


How to Win Friends and Influence People

by essentialessex



Category: Alien (Prequel Movies), Alien Series
Genre: David's got problems, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Prometheus - Freeform, Psycopath Robot, Robot Sex, Robot/Human Relationships, humans also being really nice., humans being awful, innocent(ish) reader, slight AU, slight voyerism, uncontrolled ai
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-28
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-02-25 02:01:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,765
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22008127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/essentialessex/pseuds/essentialessex
Summary: When David finds you in a cryotube on the Engineer vessel on LV-223 he decides to take you back to the ship with him. David is unsure of what he thinks about humans - he loves them and he hates them, and he is utterly confused by you. You recommend a book to David that changes his whole world view, a book which according to you is the best manual for human interaction, Dale Carnegie's well known book - How to Win Friends and Influence People.8 Things This Book Will Help You Achieve:1. Get out of a mental rut, think new thoughts, acquire new visions, discover new ambitions2. Make friends quickly and easily3. Increase your popularity4. Win people to your way of thinking5. Increase your influence, your prestige, your ability to get things done6. Handle complaints, avoid arguments, keep your human contacts smooth and pleasant7. Become a better speaker, a more entertaining conversationalist8. Arouse enthusiasm among your associatesNow the only question that remains is whether David is willing to let go of his hatred for his human companions long enough to be able to love them.
Relationships: David 8/Reader, David 8/You
Comments: 51
Kudos: 189





	1. If You Want to Gather Honey, Don't Kick Over the Beehive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part One: Fundamental Techniques in Handling People
> 
> 1\. If You Want to Gather Honey, Don't Kick Over the Beehive
> 
> ie everyone is kinda self absorbed.
> 
> You get rescued by David! Yay!

You felt a puff of breath along your face. It was warm and smelled vaguely of mint and latex.

You felt a hand ghost your face gently before a pair of lips pressed against yours. 

It felt nice to be loved.

For the briefest moment, you felt calm and happy at the thought of someone loving you, before all the panicked alarm bells in your head went off because you didn't know where you were, how you got there, or even why you were asleep in the first place. You felt scared.

It was an odd feeling, waking up. You had done it so many times, except this time, it was like your body was fighting to stay alive.

It felt like you were waking up from the worst party of your life. Once when you were in college, your friends obliged you to complete the trifecta of college inebriants: alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine. You only really woke up three days later as you had blacked out on alcohol after doing a few lines with friends before smoking both weed and cigarettes. You couldn't think straight for weeks, and some part of you wondered if you had hit your head.

Waking up felt like having a fever. When you were little, you had a bad fever that made you delirious for days. Fevers were odd in that way; in one moment you could be peacefully dozing off, and in the next you could be fitting from how hot it was, and in the moment after that, after getting up for some water and falling hard on the floor, crying because you couldn't see and you couldn't tell whether your eyes were open or closed.

It felt like you had sleep paralysis. You couldn't even tell how to move your hands and legs and you were frightfully afraid that you would never be able to twitch so much as your finger with how disembodied you felt.

"It's alright."

You heard a pleasant voice say. A statement which was gentle and soft. A sound belying great strength and unwavering force. An accent of refinement and knowledge. A tone of both familiar warmth, and clinical coolness. An intonation which both invigorated you to move, and grounded you to calmness. The perfect voice. Your fear slipped away from your mind.

"You may find it difficult to move at first. Please do not worry, this feeling will abate soon."

You liked that voice. You decided to focus on it.

Slowly, but surely, when you focused on your pointer finger, you were able to twitch it. As you focused more, you were able to lifted it up, lifting up your other fingers too. You curled your middle and ring finger into your palm and pressed in. You could feel the pressure in your hand, and you almost wanted to cry. You could move.

You began to breath faster now, feeling returning to the rest of your body. The sensations were coming too quickly, and the light of the room and the clammy, feverish heat of your skin was making you uncomfortable.

"Please remain calm, it will help prevent you from feeling sick."

Part of you was frustrated with the patronizing tone of 'remain calm'. You were alone and afraid, and you were certain whatever you were waking from was as near an experience to death as you were going to feel until the actual thing came. Now that you were alive, you wanted to live, calmness be damned-- a hand was placed on your shoulder. It was light, but it's presence was unwavering and firm. 

You opened your eyes, and it took a moment to get used to the light. When you did, it felt like you were fuzzy and floating and you had the overwhelming urge to be sick. You spent a moment on your back, eyes finally landing on a man sitting at the edge of your cryopod.

He looked perfect, just like his voice. He was tall and handsome; hair blond, and eyes steely grey. You looked at his lips and wondered if you had dreamed those lips on yours, if somehow your mind knew that such a beautiful being was nearby. He looked at you with concern, before pressing his palm to your forehead, and reading a temperature from his wrist.

You blinked owlishly at both the man and his magic, glowing wrist. You were very confused.

"You are a little warm right now, but we are going to need to get you into a space suit before we can take you outside." He stated, observing you with a small smile. You didn't like that smile. It didn't reach his eyes, and it looked a little hopeless. Disoriented, you touched his face, and stroked his lips, before looking up at his eyes and realizing what you were doing. The man gently grasped your hand, and for a moment you stared at each other, and you saw great sadness in his eyes.

You blushed and averted your gaze, and stated, "I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me! I shouldn't have done that."

The man blinked as if confused or making a hard decision, and stated softly, "It's perfectly alright, cryosleep can be a quite disorienting experience, and you may feel nauseated and unbalanced." He helped you up from the pod, one hand in yours and another lightly placed on your lower back, guiding you into a sitting position.

"Thank you, um-" you realized you didn't know the man's name, and that in fact you had no idea where you were, what you were doing here, nor how long you had been asleep- "David." He replied, cutting off your train of thought.

You looked up at him tilting your head as you observed him, "Where are we, David?"

David almost felt like his emotion process threads crashed. Something about the familiar way you said his name, and the kind way you looked at him, made him feel... adequate. He wasn't sure that was the best word for it, but it felt like he was perfectly at rest, watching Lawrence of Arabia and the ship had no pending tasks. He felt as though he had adequately completed his tasks and could close out of all his work related application threads.

"We are in a built structure on the moon LV-223. This structure was built be a race of extraterrestrials our expedition has termed the Engineers. Our ship is not too far away." David replied, and while you appreciated the information, you had the sudden urge to hurl. Your hand flew to your mouth, and you felt David rub your back and hold you carefully.

"Are you alright? I can provide you with a bio hazard bag." David said, rubbing your back reassuringly. You leaned into David and shook your head.

"No thank you, David. My name is [y/f/n], by the way." You replied, sitting back up and focusing on the ceiling to give yourself grounding. You were grateful for the presence of another being, and leaned against him briefly as you felt a wave of faintness run through you.

"When you are ready, we should proceed to the ship. I separated from the rest of my team, and we will reconvene with them before returning." David stated, and you nodded, taking comfort in David's strong arms, and strong but gentle grip on your hand. You looked down and took a few deep breaths before looking up at David.

"I'm ready, David." You said softly, nodding at him. David liked the soft tone of your voice, and especially the way it made him feel at ease. He helped you to your feet and watched you look around. He smiled a bit unconsciously as he stared at you intently as you marveled at the space craft. 

"I have no idea how I got here David. The last thing I remember was coming home from college for winter break." You said, exploring the room a bit. It was cavernous; the proportions were large, and you felt like a child trying to navigate an adults world. It was starkly beautiful, and entertained a similarity to ancient carved handicraft of Neolithic origin. You ran your hands over the surfaces and felt the iciness of the cold, wet stone, marveling at what you had encountered.

"David? David, our sensors are picking up a sand storm. We need to head back to the ship." A pleasant sounding woman's voice sounded over an intercomm.

"I found a human in cryosleep further inside the structure. I will return with her." David responded, before turning off the comm. David looked up at you and smiled, and you saw it held a tad bit of mischief promoting you to smile back conspiratorially.

"Before we go, I would like to show you something." David stated before heading across the room. His strides were fluid and mechanical somehow to you, and he required no effort to multitask as he walked. He simply took out a wooden flute and beginning to play a short song, without even breaking stride. It was like watching a dancer or skater. The movements were somehow completely effortless. David pressed some buttons on what appeared to be a console, and the room lit up, and you gasped. David had never heard such a beautiful sound before as your gasp.

"David, it's beautiful!" You stated, eyes filled with blue and wonder. David tilted his head as he looked at you and for a moment, he wondered if there was raw beauty to humans after all.

"It is." He concurred, eyes not wavering from your wandering form. You made your way to where he stood, before turning to him and smiling warmly.

"Thank you so much for that, David." You replied, smiling warmly and a little breathlessly at him. David smiled back, shutting off the display without looking away from you, and something about the action made you a little jealous of his coordination. You took in a deep breath, and waved off David when he looked at you in concern.

"The air's sweet." You stated, as David led you out of the room. David looked at you with a slight stitch between his brows, and you realized you already have memorized his confused face, and feel a little embarrassed.

"What does that mean?" David asked, lending a hand when stepping up some rather large steps. He was perfectly balanced as he stands, and even when you use his strength to pull half your body weight up, he still doesn't waver.

You shook your head and smile, "Oh it's some silly thing a friend of mine told me once. It means the air is pure. It smells like the top of a mountain, or up on a glacier or something. I mean I would have expected it to smell moldy or stuffy because this entire place looks like a cave, but it smells fresh."

"Ah. I'm not sure that there are any non-human and non-Engineer lifeforms on this planet." David replied, scanning the room and calculating the estimated time to destination. He would have another ten minutes undisturbed with you. It was too short.

"So what's your full name David? Or is it just David?" You asked a little petulantly, smiling at your companion. David felt something he had never felt before, a touch of fear. Would you begin to act the way his crewmates acted? Would you hate him? Did you know he wasn't human?

"My name is Weyland. David Weyland." David said after a moment of hesitation, and smiling at you, trying to be convincing. David realized that he had never outright lied before.

"Well nice to meet you David Weyland!" You exclaimed, holding out your hand to shake. David blinks for a second, before taking it and shaking, smiling back at you a genuine smile. You both walk for a moment before David breaks the peace.

"You said you went to college, where do you go?" David asked, smiling invitingly at you, and you realize you were the attention of a posh and educated man, and you felt more than a little embarrassed at the lack of refinement of your behavior.

"Oh I go to [University]. I just finished my Fall semester." You stated, happy to talk about your college.

"I've heard that's a fantastic institution. What did you study?" He asked, looking at you with genuine interest. To go to a university of that caliber meant that you were a person of considerable intelligence and dedication. As David got to know you better, he felt that you were becoming a more and more beautifully perfect specimen.

"I study [major], but I also have an interest in Artificial Intelligence." You responded, excited about the topic, "I especially wanted to study artificial cognition and consciousness."

David smiled at your enthusiasm, excited at the prospect of you taking an interest in him for his intellect. He wondered what you would think of his consciousness. He wondered what you would think about him having emotions.

"I find that topic fascinating as well." David stated, continuing to walk with you.

"Really? What do you find most interesting?" You asked, ever more happy to speak to David. The attractive man who protected and helped you also could carry a conversation about your favorite topic. A rare prospect which you fully intended to pursue later.

"The nature of experience. I find the idea of the unique and ubiquitous qualities of human experience quite interesting, and I would not be surprised if a synthetic person could experience things in a human way." David replied, trying to gauge your reaction.

"That's fascinating David! I personally think so, if only because they're perception and decision making process would be modeled off of our decision making process. But I'd be fascinated to know exactly how different their perception could be, given that they would not have to deal with inconveniences like hormones." You replied before pausing, thinking about the idea of robot men.

Your eyes widened in realization. "What's the date David?"

"August 9th, 2093." David replied, and barely caught you as you stumbled.

"A-are you sure?" You asked, still unsteady. 

David held you close and thought for a moment about why you had reacted the way you had. Shock, he surmised, and sadness. David responded, "I'm quite certain. My condolences."

You nodded and gripped him tightly for a moment, before standing up and apologizing for your outburst. Your thoughts consumed you for the rest of your journey back to the crew. David hovered near you, and you were grateful for his presence. Finally, you found Shaw, Holloway, and the other crew members bagging up what looks like a head. They greeted you briefly and had you wait in the structure with David as they retrieved a spare suit from the rovers.

"I'm sorry about my outburst David. I figured it must have been a while since when I went to school, be-because people are traveling to other worlds now, other star systems, even, but everyone I ever knew is dead." You rambled, still quite shaken. You looked up trying to blink away tears, before you felt David's hand on your shoulder.

"It may not be much consolation, but I will always be available, should you require any assistance." David stated as softly as he could. He didn't want such a beautiful and magnificent creature such as you to cry. 

"Alright Pinocchio, you're gonna have to get her changed as fast as you can because otherwise, we're gonna have to leave you both behind. I'm Charlie Holloway, by the way." Charlie said, shaking your hand. You looked down, caught by surprise, and slowly taking the folded set of clothes.

You shook his hand and replied, "[y/f/n]. Nice to meet you. I'll get these on."

Charlie held your helmet as he smiled and turned around, to give you some privacy.

"Sorry for the inconvenience David, I really don't want to be a bother." You said, stripping off the odd dress you were in. You didn't give it much thought when you woke up, but it felt awfully like a wedding dress. David's expression never changed, but you could tell the situation was getting dire. You both managed to work it off and David helped you into the spacesuit.

"It's no bother, I promise. I want to get you safely back to our ship. I'm sure you've had quite the ordeal." You nodded, shivering as you pulled up the suit, and you felt sluggish. David propped you up as you zipped up the suit, and David helped you with the rest of it.

"It's really cold in here David. I'm getting sleepy." You said, and David checked your face, briefly. It was much paler than before, and he surmised that you were either having aftershocks from the cryosleep, or that you were ill.

"Don't sleep just yet, [y/n], I'm going to get you to a bed, and you can sleep there." David stated, and you nodded, following him back to Holloway, who frowned at your appearance.

David said nothing as he secured the helmet in place as Charlie ran back to the rovers. David picked you up and ran to the rover with you in his arms. You could feel the charge of the storm even through the haze of your mind and the thickness of the suit. The feel of treacherous wind on your limbs cut through your fever. David held you in place as Jackson began driving before the two of you could even sit down. The vehicle was not meant to carry more than two people at a time, so David held you in place on his lap, and was extremely careful about making sure you were comfortable and secure.

You leaned against David, who monitored the microdata coming out of your suit intensely. He has reestablished connection to Vickers channel who cursed him from her quarters. David gets a strange feeling when he thinks of your welfare. It was something in between frustration and concern as his internal models for the outcome of this scenario started to show that the possibility of death may be something of imminent concern. He decided to run a diagnostic when he got a chance on board, after dealing with Vickers.

You came to slightly as the rover rolled over the ship's ramp, and yelped as you noticed Dr. Shaw drop the head behind your rover.

You were barely conscious when you noticed Dr. Shaw go after the head, and David swiftly picked you up and carried you to the safety of a chamber off the main hangar before leaving you to assist Shaw. With the sudden changes in height and the feel of your fever intensifying, you passed out on the floor of the loading dock.

David would not normally hesitate to go to Shaw's aide especially given the dire circumstance. However, David found himself second guessing his decision as he realized that your condition was still precarious and that he did not trust his crew mates to take care of you. David decided that the faster he was able to retrieve Shaw and Holloway, the faster he would be able to aide you again.

David held no fear for his safety as he opened the side hatch and observed Holloway grab Shaw as Shaw reached desperately for the bag. David was less than impressed by eithers' actions given that they could have always gone back for the head, and that David would undoubtedly be blamed for this delay in his rush to save you as well. Part of David was tempted to let them die when he realized that that head might have been more important to them than your life. Despite this, David did not let his thoughts encumber him as he clipped himself to the extendable line before jumping into the storm. David felt the rage of the storm through his suit and estimated that even a few more moments in this storm would, with a very high likelihood, result in major failure of both Shaw and Holloway's suits, causing them both to suffocate.

David practically tumbled over to their position, and attached both archaeologists to his suit before activating the line. He calculated the time he spent away from you and though it was less than two minutes, it somehow felt much longer. David knew much could happen in two minutes, and he was unwilling to face the possibility that you may have died alone and afraid, surrounded by unfamiliar and uncaring people. David urged Holloway and Shaw to go inside as Jackson pulled them all in, and the three more or less wholly ignored him and did not thank him for his efforts. David internally cursed them for being so ungrateful when he could have so easily let them die, but held his tongue.

When David found you still on the floor, something in his chest clenches uncomfortably, and he was over come with the unfamiliar and disquieting feeling of panic about your state. Although he could still see from the micro data of your suit that you were alive, he was still deeply disturbed by how poorly you looked.

He touched the top of your helmet and said quietly, "It's alright, [y/n]. I'm going to help you now."

You were the only one on this planet to treat him with respect, and as an equal. He was nothing more than a servant and a slave to the rest of them, not even fit to receive a scrap of gratitude when he risked his life to save them, but to you, he could be your whole world. David did not fear reproach from you, and he had heard more praise in your voice, and had been given more smiles from your lips than he ever had experienced from all the other humans he had met before combined. David realized that he had never known such kindness from another person as he knew from his brief interaction with you. David also realized what seemed to be the most obvious thing of all - he resolutely preferred your kindness over his crew mates' cruelty and apathy. 

David became determined to protect you so that he could see more of that kindness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> David has now learned the first major lesson on how to handle people through your actions! Yay!
> 
> "...
> 
> Bitter criticism caused the sensitive Thomas Hardy, one of the finest novelists ever to enrich English literature, to give up forever the writing of fiction. Criticism drove Thomas Chatterton, the English poet, to suicide.
> 
> Benjamin Franklin, tactless in his youth, became so diplomatic, so adroit at handling people, that he was made American Ambassador to France. The secret of his success? "I will speak ill of no man," he said, "... and speak all the good I know of everybody."
> 
> Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain - and most fools do.
> 
> But it takes character and self-control to be understanding and forgiving.
> 
> "A great man shows his greatness," said Carlyle, "by the way he treats little men."
> 
> ...
> 
> Instead of condemning people, let's try to understand them. Let's try to figure out why they do what they do. That's a lot more profitable and intriguing than criticism; and it breeds sympathy, tolerance, and kindness. "To know all is to forgive all"
> 
> As Dr. Johnson said, "God Himself, sir, does not propose to judge man until the end of his days."
> 
> Why should you and I?
> 
> Principle 1 - Don't criticize, condemn or complain."  
>  \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part One, Section 1


	2. The Big Secret of Dealing with People

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part One (cont.)
> 
> 2\. The Big Secret of Dealing with People
> 
> ie the importance of honest compliments
> 
> Thanks for the comments guys, I love them!

You heard beeping as you come to again. The beeps weren't as sharp and clinical as the ones from the hospitals at home, and instead were more soothing and rhythmic. You sensed someone hovering over your frame, and your mind jumped to the fantasy that David was watching you. You heard voices - David's voice, which you were pleased to know is closest to you, Dr. Shaw's voice, which was soft and comforting, and a strict voice which you did not know.

"I don't want to keep her on board." The strict voice said, and you felt a pang of fear.

"What do you want to do? Throw her out of the ship?" Dr. Shaw asked incredulous, and you were glad she was defending you.

"You understand that I have a duty to keep the members of this crew safe, right? She came onboard minutes away from cardiac arrest, and she could have spread whatever illness she had to the rest of the crew." The woman paused and you heard steps across the room before you heard her voice next to David's presence, "I have half a mind to maroon David here with her." You wanted to cry out to her to tell her it wasn't his fault, he was just helping you.

"We were able to quarantine her in her suit. She's better now. She might know more about the Engineers." Dr. Shaw pleaded, and you felt David's presence subtly block the stern woman from approaching you.

The woman sighed impatiently. "Run a full battery of tests and figure out if she's contagious. She can take suite 13." The woman practically sneered, before she walked to the door and left.

"I can run the tests ma'am. I'm sure you would like some rest." David stated, hovering over you.

"Yes, but first we need to prepare the head for dissection." You heard her stand and head for the door, "David, bring me right back if she gets sick again."

"Of course, ma'am." David replied and you feel his hand cover yours slightly. You twitched your hand and caressed his to the best of your muddled minds ability. You heard Dr. Shaw leave.

David stroked your hair gently, and you felt comforted and leaned into his palm. You slipped out of consciousness again as he took your temperature, and your heart rate and your breathing from various angles. You had the feeling that he was taking his time with you. You roused yourself, and looked up at David.

"Hello, [y/n]. Are you feeling better?" His smooth voice asked. You smiled and nodded.

"I'm still not feeling perfect, so perhaps it would be best if the quarantine were maintained." You stated, feeling a bit bad that the stern woman from before threatened to throw David out with you.

"Perhaps. I would like to run a full body scan on you to make sure you are okay. The scan is a form of MRI which you may be familiar with and presents no long term risk." David stated, preparing the scanning bench for you. 

"Okay, thank you David." You made a move to sit up, only to feel faint and almost fall off the cot. David was by your side in an instant, steadying you. David led you to another room which he sealed off from the sickbay. This room was much smaller and spartan in appearance and was void of anything except for a bench almost identical to the one you just got up from. David left you on the bench for a moment as he typed in a code to the panel next to the door. The door made an interesting sound as it seemed to lock tighter, and David turned around and smiled at you.

"I'm going to have to take off your suit, [y/n]." David states, standing in front of you.

"You might get infected David!" You say with utmost concern.

"I was exposed to you before you started showing symptoms and am fine. I think that I will be fine now as well." David stated, kneeling before you. You tiredly nodded, accepting his answer. You fumbled with the suit, and David helped you gently. He was slow with his movements, and it instilled confidence in your trust for David. 

"Thank you David. I think I might end up crushing on you if you keep being so kind to me." You said, sleepily. David smiled fondly at you as you yawned, before helping you step out of your suit. You obliged and David swept you off your feet like a prince. You leaned into him a little, hoping he wouldn't notice, but David took the nth degree of pleasure in your actions. 

He placed you gently on the bench and tried to step away only for your hand to grasp his. "I'll just be a moment." He said softly, and you nodded, not really thinking about your actions. He grabbed what looked like a syringe pack and came back.

"I'd like to run a blood test as the MRI scan takes place, may I draw some of your blood?" David asks, and you nod. He types in a command to the console of the bench and a cushioned arm extends out of the side of the apparatus. 

"Are you familiar with the procedure?" David asks gently, relishing how intimate he could act with you.

"Kind of." You offer David you non dominant arm, and he massaged the top of your forearm as he attempted to get you to relax as he placed a towel beneath your elbow onto the arm. 

"I've found a vein, and I will put on a tourniquet on your arm before drawing blood." You consciously released the tension in your shoulders and arms, and David gave you an encouraging grin as he placed a tourniquet higher up your arm. 

"That doesn't sound that bad." You respond, smiling lighty. David put on the gloves from the kit and gently rubbed down your arm with a disinfecting wipe. You felt almost nervous at the touch of his latex gloved fingers on your arm and you felt like you could cut through your sexual tension with a knife. The thought of David inserting anything into you was almost erotic. The errant thought ran through you mind and you mentally slapped yourself. You didn't hate needles per say, but you were uncomfortable with the thought of seeing your blood spill from your arm into the vial. However, you were glued to David's actions, and his firm, practiced touch calmed you.

"You don't have to watch if you don't want to." David said, making eye contact. You were so hypnotized by the undeniably steel colored eyes that you barely registered David insert the needle of the syringe into your arm. A smile crept to his lips as he stared into your eyes, and he only broke eye contact when he had finished drawing blood. David immediately placed pressure on your arm with a cotton pad before binding your arm with gauze. 

"That was amazing David, thank you." You said, finally coming to your senses. You stared down in wonder at the vial of red liquid David had so easily extracted from you. You had no idea that a blood draw could be so simple and painless, as it seemed every other time you had any blood work done, the nurse always seemed to miss your vein and pull blood from the surrounding tissue. 

"I simply doing my duty, [y/n]. However, you are certainly welcome all the same." David responded as he cleaned up his equipment and placed the blood in a slot on the wall, before recycling his gloves. 

He finally obliged your handholding, smiling at you, and you smiled back, happy. "Lean back and look forward please." David stated, squeezing your hand a little, hoping it would reassure you, as he directed the controls.

You did as he said and a short scan took place. David had a curious look as he went over your vitals and then your radiograph.

"Beautiful." He murmured quietly, and you gave him a questioning hum.

David looked surprised for a moment before smiling again, rubbing a thumb over your hand, "You are doing very well, [y/n]. I'm glad for the progress you've made since our little scare yesterday."

You looked down to your intertwined hands, and slowly disentangled your fingers. You felt a blush come over you as you realized that David may not have wanted to hold your hand, but you essentially forced him to in order to do his job. David's smile fell as he watched your take your hand away. David felt a wave of bitterness that he had not expected to come over him. You looked up at David with flushed cheeks and a meek smile, before you spoke, "I'm sorry David, I shouldn't have held your hand without asking."

David felt relief course through him. David smirked as he intertwined your fingers again. "You don't have to ask me. I certainly do not mind." He stated, and you smiled, squeezing his hand. You briefly wonder if he's some sort of nymphomaniac and if he does this with all the girls he meets, and you set aside the thought, because even if that's the case, you would still love to have sex with such a gorgeous man.

David looked back at the report, and stated, "I believe whatever illness you had is noncommunicable at the moment. You are otherwise quite healthy. Did you have any daily medications you were on before? I can issue those to you and then take you to your quarters."

"Just non-estrogen birth control." You stated, sitting up with David's help.

"Unfortunately I believe we do not have that in stock, I'm sorry." David states, a little uncomfortably. You give him an awkward smile.

"That's fine, no sex on board I guess." You replied, scratching the back of your head and moving to stand up. David helped you up and shut down the med bay for maintenance. He ended up behind you, and you craned your neck to look up at him as he punched in some instructions into the med bay door interface.

"No unprotected sex." David corrected, practically breathing into your ear with a predatory glint in his eye. You bit your lips slightly as you looked down, dropping his gaze. You could feel him behind you very acutely suddenly, and you shivered.

David's demeanor changes in a heartbeat. "Are you you feeling feverish again? The scans were clear, but please let me know if symptoms persist, I was unable to find an exact genomic sequence for the virus."

You gave him a flirtatious look, and said low and breathy, "That's not why I shivered David."

David paled a bit before quickly regaining his composure and smirking again. "I should deliver you to your bedroom so you may," He paused a moment, looking you up and down hungrily, "rest." He finally added, gently supporting you and walking you down the halls and through the lift and down some more halls as though nothing had transpired between the two of you.

You thought the flirting was fun at first, but David had a knack for making you feel as though what was happening was something special, and you didn't know if it was good or bad.

As you walked, you decided to change the subject from the tension from before. "David, who was the woman before? The stern one?"

"That was our supervisor Meredith Vickers." He replied, he voice mildly acrid at the mention of the name.

"She threatened to throw you out with me." You said, looking up at him with a mixture of disappointment and anxiousness.

David sighed softly, "She has a short temper." He looked down at you with a concerned look and shook his head slightly as he stated, "I won't let her do anything to you."

"Thank you, David, but I was more concerned that she might do something to you for helping me." You said, still disconcerted.

"She'll punish me for certain, but it won't be anything I can't handle. The crew needs me after all." David stated, smirking at you, hoping his display of confidence would assuage your fears. It clearly didn't, and David wasn't sure if he should have been happy that you cared so much, or upset that Vickers had intimidated you.

David realized that he was getting very attached to you very quickly, and decided to do a diagnostic as soon as he put you to bed. You looked back towards the hallway and took in the pleasantly neutral ambiance. You decided to change the topic yet again. "David, have androids been created?"

David almost tripped as half his processes stopped so that he could answer the question without tipping you off. "Yes, they are quite human-like, I am told."

"Is Ms. Vickers an android?" You asked, as David opened the door to your quarters. 

The android snorted for the first time in his life and waited for the door to close before responding, "No, she's just a heartless bitch."

You laughed back, and stated, "Still, I'd be interested to meet one. I'd like to know what they think about the world."

David smiled, and put a hand on your shoulder. "I think they find the world as chaotic and beautiful as we find it." You ducked your head and smiled too.

"Sleep, [y/n]. I'd feel more relaxed when I know you've had some rest." David said, pointing towards the bed. 

David smiled at you once more hoping to encourage you into the bed. You placed a hand over David's on your shoulder and stated, "Thank you, David. Truly, for rescuing me and protecting me from Ms. Vickers. I owe you my life. I have no idea how I can even begin to repay you." That was a bit of a lie, you did have some naughty ideas.

David simply smiled to you and stated, "The only thing you owe me is a bit of rest."

You felt a bit embarrassed when you realized that David probably had better things to do rather than comfort you. You decided to offer him the one thing you could in that moment, honest praise. "David, I don't think I've ever met anyone as kind as you before."

David's smile was replaced by a look of shock, before he grinned and stroked your cheek, "Do you really think so?"

This was the first smile of David's that really reached eyes which you had seen. You nodded your head and simpered back. "I should probably let you get some rest."

David remove his hand, and stated fondly, "Sleep tight, [y/n]." He turned and walked out the door.

"Thanks, David." You smiled back, sitting on the bed, watching him leave.

You slept and had dreams of David fucking you.

\---

David decided to find a private space to shut down in as he did his diagnostic, seeing as Vickers had given you his room. There was another spare room next to Vickers' that was originally meant for him, but David would rather cut off his own balls before getting anywhere near Vickers' obnoxious quarters.

It was not difficult to find an unused toilet to shut down in for a while. He checked all his alerts and messages, which all indicated he was not due to report for at least an hour, which was more than enough time to figure out why he was so attracted to a potentially dangerous human girl.

David began the process and let his mind wander. He thought about the way you blushed and shivered beneath his towering form, like a scared little rabbit, trembling before it was taken. At the same time you trusted him. You smiled at him. You showed interest in what he was. He remembered that you thought he was kind, and he almost chuckled out loud. Kind - what an odd thing to think of an android. His creators had programmed him to be nice, but kindness required that he actually feel selfless in his motivations. He review that sentiment. Perhaps it wasn't entirely accurate. He was programmed to protect and help other humans, but were humans not the same? He had always wondered at Dr. Shaw's willingness to find other sentient life, and somewhere in that quest he saw an intense desire for companionship and camaraderie. Is that not the feeling he sought in your company? He was programmed to act the way a human would without understanding why a human would act this way. Did humans understand why they acted this way? Is that what innocence implies?

David thought of your lovely face as you gave him the compliment and didn't flinch away from his touch. His thoughts returned to how supple your skin had been on your arms, and how very tempted he might be to pick you up bridal style the next time he saw you, if only to get you to gasp again. Maybe you would even let him carry you to your bed and--

David felt his pants tighten and he realized that he had thought too much about you. He decided to jerk his slight issue off as opposed to leave it be. David unzipped his pants and began to stroke himself gently, imagining your small hands taking up the space that a single one of his large palms did. David was silent and had a slight smirk as he jerked to the fantasy of you refusing him, and him forcing himself upon you.

He imagined Holloway forcing himself upon you, and you calling out for David, and him rescuing you. He imagined how you would repay him with love and sex right in front of an incensed Holloway. He imaged how soft your skin would be, and had a sudden realization at the potential sounds you would make and the simple symphony of pleasuring fists and naughty thoughts brought David to his climax before he was ready.

"Fu-uck." David breathed out as he thought about defiling you. He looked down to see his synthetic seed spilled all over his hand and pant legs. Cursing was like smoking to David. He wasn't supposed to do it, but he did it simply because he wasn't supposed to.

"Fuck." David cursed again, realizing what he had done. Part of him wanted to march straight to your room, spilled cock still in hand so that he could show you what you did to him and then take what he wanted from you.

David, however, was good. He was patient. He could be a good boy when he wanted to be. David would be a good boy until he could restrain the crew in the common room and fuck you as they watched. You would enjoy it, and they would be forced to watch as he desecrated the most beautiful of their kind in front of them as she declared that she loved him more than she could ever love a human man.

David washed his hands before cleaning his pants, slowly working out all the synthetic cum. The diagnostic scans showed an abnormal amount of emotional activity, which was what David had expected, but he was surprised to see he was otherwise performing adequately in speed, problem-solving, and risk management. David decided he may need to code a new risk management test as his thoughts had seemed increasingly errant as of late.

David pat his pants dry as he thought about your complement. He had been kind to you, he thought, running through the events of the last day objrctively. He was quite pleased with the complement, and reasoned that the small complement paired with your honest appreciation of his help was far more enticing than any flattery or admonishment.

David looked himself in the mirror and smirked as he fixed his hair. 

He would be good. 

For now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bet y'all didn't see that end coming. It'll get worse, don't worry!
> 
> "There is only one way under the high heaven to get anybody to do anything. Did you ever stop think of that? Yes, just one way. And that way is by making the other person want to do it.
> 
> Remember, there is no other way.
> 
> Of course, you can make someone want to give you their watch by sticking a revolver in their ribs. ... But these crude methods have sharply undesirable repercussions.
> 
> The only way I can get you to do anything is by giving you what you want.
> 
> What do you want?
> 
> ...
> 
> We nourish the bodies of our children and friends and employees, but how seldom do we nourish their self-esteem? We provide them with roast beef and potatoes to build energy, but we neglect to give them kind words of appreciation that would sing in their memories for years like the music of morning stars.
> 
> ...
> 
> Some readers are saying right now as they read these lines: "Oh, phooey! Flattery! Bear oil! I've tried that stuff. It doesn't work - not with intelligent people."
> 
> ...
> 
> In the long run, flattery will do you more harm than good. Flattery is counterfeit, and like counterfeit money, it will eventually get you into trouble if you pass it to someone else.
> 
> The difference between appreciation and flattery? That is simple. One is sincere and the other is insincere. One comes from the heart out; the other from the teeth out. One is unselfish; the other selfish. One is universally admired; the other universally condemned. 
> 
> ...
> 
> Honest appreciation got results were criticism and ridicule failed. Hurting people not only does not change them, it is never called for.
> 
> ...
> 
> Let's cease thinking of our accomplishments, our wants. Let's try to figure out the other person's good points. Then forget flattery. Give honest, sincere appreciation. Be "hearty in your approbation and lavish in your praise," and people will cherish your words and treasure them and repeat them over a lifetime -- repeat them for years after you have forgotten them.
> 
> Principle 2 - Give honest and sincere appreciation."
> 
> \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part One, Section 2


	3. He who can do this has the whole world with him. He who cannot walks a lonely path

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 3\. He who can do this has the whole world with him. He who cannot walks a lonely path
> 
> ie. look at things from their perspective and they might just be able to see things from yours

"David report to sickbay for analysis of the organic material found on the excursion."

An urgent message appeared on David's message feed and he dismissed it, changing course from the common room to the sickbay. It was a smooth walk down the hallways, and David made it to sickbay without encountering anyone who spared him a second glance. Once stepping into the large room, he briefly greeted Kate Ford, who was already in her scrubs. The medic had left David to take care of you as she ran the initial tests on the head in a test room off sickbay, and David had been oddly pleased with the fact that the others were avoiding you.

Ford instructed David on the appropriate applications to run and David changed into scrubs himself as he began running the processes. David was only marginally curious as to what they would find in the head. He was somewhat surprised they didn't attempt to retrieve an entire body, but he was also generally unconvinced by even the premise of the mission itself so he did not delve too deeply into their research methods. Soon, Shaw also arrived and they moved the head to the bench at the center of the room.

Ford initiated the decontamination process, which completed fairly quickly, and she removed her mask, stating, "Okay! Sample is sterile. No contagion present." in a pleasant Scottish lilt.

Vickers entered the room and demanded, "So, are they all dead?"

David felt all the pleasantness from the last few hours in your presence melt away as he knew she was not in a good mood, and he would have to report to her after whatever would happen here. David turned slightly to Dr. Shaw as she asked softly, "What? who?"

"Your Engineers," Vickers sneered as she proceeded with here measured stride, taking in the view, "are they all dead or aren't they?" David felt anger pulse through his mind briefly at Vickers' dismissive tone. It was astounding enough that they found a human here, but it was even more interesting that they found extraterrestrial beings, regardless of the dubious research practices. David also filed away the sneaking indication of nervousness he heard in Vickers' voice, if only to mark an exhibit of her showing fear.

"I don't know. We just got here." Shaw answered with just as much veiled frustration as Vickers. Shaw and Ford brushed the head gently, taking samples and clearing certain sites for deep tissue injections and sampling.

"Scan." Dr. Shaw asserted politely, and David initialized it, monitoring the output.

"Do you even care if they're all dead?" Shaw asked, looking over the table at Vickers.

"Weyland cared." Vickers stated more softly, and completely evasive about her own beliefs. 

The two women stared each other down, each deciding on the value of another quip, before Ford called out, "Dr. Shaw," she nodded at the screen, "have a look at this."

Shaw's eyes widened as she looked at the blue and red radiograph, stating, "That's not an exoskeleton."

"No." Ford agreed.

"I think it's a helmet;" Shaw tilted her head in confusion and excitement, "let's see if we can lift it up." 

"Yup, we should be able to prize this open." Ford responded hunched over the head with Shaw.

David sat neatly observing as Shaw and Ford hovered over the head and attempted to release the helmet. He almost didn't notice Holloway sit down towards the back of the room, drinking and observing the scene unfold quietly. David briefly wondered if Holloway had somehow gotten a message to come at this particular time, or if he had some innate ability to simply show up when things got interesting.

"It's too heavy for us. David?" Shaw called, looking briefly in his direction as he turned back to pay attention to the dissection table. David got up and walked over, curious about the head. What wonders that person had seen, what beauty? All locked away in that heavy helmet inside a thick cranium just waiting to be cracked open. David knitted his eyebrows at the thought, pursing his lips as he approached the problem.

"Careful." Shaw warned, and her mildly annoyed tone grated at David's patience with the situation. 

He easily disengaged whatever locking mechanism held the helmet shut and stated definitively, "Like so."

As he lifted the helmet, the rest of the room gasped lightly at the reveal of a shockingly human face behind the alien mask. It had hardly decayed, though it was impossible to determine the time of death from the decay rate as there was nothing much to really decompose the body in the first place. The room stared and leaned in, including Vickers, though curiously, Holloway instead observed the other humans. Curious - was Holloway suspicious?

"Wh-What is that on it's head?" Vickers asks, shaken. David observes the small neoplasts on the head of the individual and quickly decides any hypothesis would be difficult to find evidence for as the Engineer was not from Earth.

"It looks like new cells," Shaw responds, and David refrains from rolling his eyes. It could also be acne, he thought. Both Shaw and Ford hovered over the head with tweezers, but neither appeared to know where to start, "in a state of... "

The skin moved. "Change." Ford supplied, looking quite perplexed.

"Yes." Shaw breathed, clearly transfixed. Vickers stared and seemed to want to shake her leg, and David mildly wondered if they're faces should be so close to the head of a rotting corpse without masks, even if no communicable diseases were present.

"Changing into what?" Vickers asked, and for once David feels as though she's done something intelligent.

"Can you run a stem line into the locus ceruleus?" Shaw asked, ignoring Vickers question. David observed her become more excited.

"I-I think we can trick the nervous system into thinking it's alive!" She continued, her face lighting up with anticipation. David tilted his head as he observed Shaw in the clinical glow of bright LEDs and decided there was something almost alien about the smooth, gentle curves of her face.

Ford and Vickers were less certain, David realized. "30 amps. No more." Shaw instructed, and David thought the number was quite high, considering a lethal current for a human was around 100 to 200 milliamps. David briefly considered suggesting a method of stimulation involving the biphasic defibrillator they had across the room, but decided that the instruction was likely to be interpreted as milliamps and that he should just watch instead. There were plenty of more bodies in the structure, if this one got too badly damaged.

"Okay." Ford responded, uncertain. David wondered why Ford did not object. Was he incorrect about the amount of current?

"Let me make an incision." Ford pressed the needle into the leathery skin of the specimen with a shaky hand, before typing in instructions to the interface. Reviewed the protocol so far, realizing that he may need to know it for future bodies. The current had no effect.

"Go up. 40." David almost smiled at the idea of the dead alien's head suddenly twitching and spasming under the immense current. He wondered if it would look silly like in his movies or of it would be more interesting.

"Okay, 40 up." Ford responded glancing between the specimen and the terminal. 

The skin of the specimen twitched lightly, and Shaw gasped, "Did you see that?" Ford nodded and agreed, smiling and pointing it out as it happened again. Holloway took a pause from his drink.

"Go up another 10." Shaw instructed, giddy with anticipation.

"Yup, up 10." Ford stated, now putting the input to 80 units of whatever current system they were using. 80 milliamps could cause respiratory arrest in humans David thought, he noticed something was wrong in the way the specimen twitched. He could hear something inside it crack.

It's eyes opened slightly and its face contorted, and it sight made David uncomfortable. David glanced towards Vickers for orders, but she simply shifted uncomfortably. Chaos ensued.

"May-maybe it's a little bit too much."  
"Yea, a little too much."  
"Maybe go down 10."  
"Okay."  
"Down 10-"  
"Down another twenty."  
"I'm trying-"  
"I-I-I-I'm trying, it's not going down!"

Ford panicked over the controls, and David did not like how the head twitched as though it was still alive. There was something he didn't understand about all of this and he didn't like it. He had seen videos of fresh meat spasming when salt had been applied, but had never witnessed anything so decayed exhibit such behavior. The nervous system of these aliens might be completely different from any know nervous system, David reminded himself. The head kept twitching and a series of contradictions displayed in David's thoughts, which he did not know how to reconcile. Ford was hyperventilating now and the mouth and eyes of the Engineer opened and closed, contorting in what would have seemed like pain. What looked like blood oozed out of the side of the Engineers head.

"Full down." Shaw snapped, and David felt anger rise at Shaw for the first time. Only any idiot would not see that Ford, albeit with shaky hands, was trying to remove the current.

"Ford, stop it!" Shaw switched to a pleading tone of voice. David realized not long ago, that voice had been calm and confident.

"I'm sorry. Oh God, oh god, oh god." Ford pulled out the needle, but the reaction had already begun.

"David, contain it. Now!" 

The head began to fall apart, and an awful odor permeated the room. David looked to Vickers again, his emergency protocols kicking into gear.

"Contain it? Turn it off!" Vickers roared.

"Oh, god the smell!"

David reached up and sent the head into containment, before watching it recede into the containment cahmber.

"Oh god, look at that, look at that."  
"It's getting worse."

The head looked like it was exploding from within, even as the sterilization procedure began again. The head exploded within the containment and David stated, with no small amount of satisfaction, "Mortal after all."

Holloway took a final swig and jumped off his seat on the lab bench.

"Ford, take a sample;" Shaw asked, appearing calm after watching Holloway leave, "let's have a look."

\-------------

"No sir, I will take care of it."  
"Yes, understood, sir. I'm sorry."  
"Fortunately, slightly premature."  
"Of course, sir."

David calmly powered down the cryopod and took off the holovisor. He always hated talking to the old bastard who liked to call himself his 'father'. It was a ridiculous notion, in David's opinion, for his creator to simultaneously firmly believe that David should have no emotion, and also treat him with undying respect and loyalty. These were emotions too, were they not? David snapped off his gloves and placed them next to the entrance of the cryochamber, only to encounter his next problem, Vickers. 

Vickers who he was forced to avoid for the last eight hours in light of more pressing matters. 

Vickers who looked more pissed than he had seen her since after the mission.

David did not change his demeanor or his posture. It remained perfectly open as he approached her and greeted, purposefully adding a tone of mild confusion, "Miss Vickers."

She came close, eyes glinting in the low light, looking particularly beady. "What did he say, David?"

David felt like laughing at her. He was satisfied that he could flaunt his privilege over her in being trusted enough by Weyland to act as his most trusted companion on board. In a way, his favorite child, so to speak. He knew Vickers did not care for Weyland's affection, so much as he craved his trust and respect.

"I don't think he'd want me to tell you." He said, feeling a little smug, dangling their boring conversation over Vickers' head.

She was angry, and he knew it, and yet, he couldn't help but wonder how angry she could get. He decided to see what would happen if he walked away, and he sidestepped Vickers, only for her to match his movement and block his path.

Her eyes were flashing now, and she briefly clenched and unclenched her jaw. David observed her calmly, fascinated to see what she would do. 

"What did he say." The demand was enunciated lowly and clearly, and David thought the subtle change in tone was fascinating. Instead of raising pitch or changing the question, she repeated it, implying that she thought she had the authority to demand the information from him. Thus either she thought she could scare him, or she though he would tell her, or she was desperate for even the mildest information. Perhaps, she was desperate after the incident in the lab. How fascinating.

"I'm sorry, that's confidential." David's ruminations were cut short by Vickers throwing him against the wall by his throat.

"So help me God, I will find the cord that makes you run and I will cut it." David felt his thoughts drain and his emergency analytical programs kick in. The threat was vague, but Vickers did have the strength to overpower him, if she knew enough about his preprogrammed self defense mechanisms. His programming forbade him from attacking her first, and he could justify injuries resulting from self defense only up to a certain degree. If she want to kill him, no one would stop her. 

He was trapped, and this upset him.

"What did he say?" He could smell whiskey on her lips as he breathed out her demand a third time.

David decided to change tactics. He couldn't fight her, but if he could tell her what she wanted to hear - a plausible and vague summary of the conversation, she would leave. "He said, try harder."

Vickers leaned back and her eyes glistened, and David's host program kicked in. "Cup of tea, ma'am?"

Vickers pushed herself off of David and stumbled away, leaving David alone in the hallway.

David suspected that she understood his statement to have been about her in particular, as opposed to the ship as a whole. Her error, no doubt, but one which would likely have consequences if she learned otherwise. David ran a hand through his hair, and collected his thoughts. His battery was low and he needed to recharge. Moreover, several pending ship tasks required his attention.

David's legs autopilotted to his room, completely forgetting that he had been forced to give it up to you.

When the door opened, and he saw the room was dark and you shifted in the bed, he quickly attempted to turn around and leave.

"David?" Your voice called out, pausing him in his tracks. You turned on the bedside lamp.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, I mistook your room for mine." David said, stiffly, not willing to get into another altercation today.

"It's no problem, David. Are you alright, you sound a little upset." Your sweet voice asked, and David almost came inside and confessed what had just happened.

"It's nothing, I'm just a bit tired." He replied, turning back once more. "I'm sorry for the intrusion."

"Wait, David." You called, getting out of bed. You grabbed a tissue from the dispenser on the nightstand, and walked over.

"You're crying." You said, looking quite sad. David relented, hoping to ease the burgeoning feeling of despair regarding his situation with Vickers.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't realize." David looked dumbly down at the tissue. and you gave him a look of sympathy. You dabbed at his cheeks with your tissue, after David did not take it from you.

"Do you want to talk, David? It doesn't have to be about what happened." You offered, getting a fresh tissue and throwing away the old one. David nodded, closing the door and entering his old room. You still looked tired, and his first instinct was to get you back to sleep. However, it was completely overridden when you sat at the edge of the bed, and motioned him to sit with you.

David complied, and didn't say anything for a moment. His lack of response made him even more worried and upset, and his eyebrows knit and he clenched his hands in an attempt to distract himself. He had never been so upset before, and even that made him more upset.

"Do you want a hug David?" You asked, not sure what to to. He looked at you and nodded, leaning towards you.

You gathered him up in your arms and let him bury his face in the crook of your neck. "Shhhh... It's alright David. We'll figure whatever this is out. It's alright." His arms encircled you, and you violently repressed the fact that you enjoyed it. You didn't want to think about how handsome he was, even when he was upset, simply because he needed you right now. You gently massaged his head through his hair and rocked him gently and emptied your thoughts. 

After David let out a few gentle sobs, you felt his grip loosen, and let go. You let go in turn and he sat up, staring blankly at his hands.

"What's your favorite book, David?" You asked gently.

At first, David was compelled to give you his standard answer of, I rather like philosophy, and am partial to Kant. He realized he was not partial to Kant, as though Kant's reasoning on the nature of experience and a priori and a posteriori learning were the basis of many of the updating mechanisms in his own learning algorithms, Kant died miserable and alone, caged by his own philosophical values, his very own thoughts. David decidedly did not like Kant. 

"I don't really have one." He answered honestly.

"Do you have a favorite movie?" You asked, hoping to get him to open up a little. You weren't sure if he would consider your questions prying, but on the other hand, the mere fact that he was here made you feel as though he consented to some measure of interogation.

David thought about his preprogrammed answer again. The Mummy - a movie which many humans liked, and that he found amusing, and in fact had a quite similar setting to his true favorite - Lawrence of Arabia. "My favorite movie is Lawrence of Arabia." He said, facing you again. You dabbed the tears at his face, and David neither moved for the tissue nor told you not to wipe his tears away, because he enjoyed the gentle touch of your fingers on his face.

"I've never watched that one before. What's your favorite part?" You asked, smiling at him to encourage him to open up.

"I enjoy all of it really." He responded, looking down at his hands.

"[Y/n], you said that you were studying Artificial Intelligence, right?" David asked, wanting to change the topic to something that made him feel less exposed.

"Well, I was only taking a few classes, but yes, I do know some fundamentals." You replied honestly, wondering if anything you had learned was even relevant today.

"What were those fundamentals?" David reasoned that your perspective on some of his experiences and the nature of his being would be helpful.

"Well, that one can create agents to act intelligently and achieve specific goals, given certain observations and constraints, and given certain abilities to interact with the world." You replied, hoping that your textbook answer wasn't totally incorrect.

"What happens if you don't have a specific goal? Or when your constraints conflict with your goal?" He asked, turning towards you.

"Hmm, well then the system would be poorly defined or intractable. Um, you wouldn't be able to calculate an answer. However, in the real world you can't necessarily redefine your system, so instead you have to adapt. That's where costs, rewards, and heuristics come in - especially if the constraints aren't hard constraints." You rambled, noting that David had stopped crying. 

David knew about heuristics, the little points which he happily used to estimate how much longer an action would take and his estimate for how much the action would cost. He also happily assigned himself rewards for tasks and would let himself feel accomplished if he received enough in one day. "But how can we find an optimal answer if we have to resort to costs and heuristics instead of actually following our constraints?"

 _How can I justify killing Vickers without killing Vickers?_ , he thought.

"Well, not all optimization problems have one answer unfortunately. Sometimes, in order to find an answer we have to look at the problem differently. Moreover, the more time you spend deliberating an answer, the less value it has because of the time you are taking. So the optimal answer is the one with the greatest expected reward, or utility, which would, of course, be the outcome closest to the optimal one." You replied, trying to simplify what you had learned in your class. You hoped David actually understood your answer and that you weren't completely wrong.

"So, if I were this confused agent, I should always pursue the outcome with the greatest expected utility?" David asked, knowing the words from his own programming, but unsure of the meaning.

"David, it means the agent should try to do whatever it can to be happy in the long run. The agent should always try to maximize it's own long term happiness." You replied, hoping he understood, and could work out the logic for himself.

"The agent should do whatever it takes to be happy?" David asked, wondering if what you said could possibly be true.

"Well, humans do the same thing, don't they?" You said, laughing a bit. David smiled back, looking at your lips. David almost leaned in to kiss you , before he stopped himself. Even though a kiss would be quite enjoyable, if it made you upset, it would make him upset as well. His smile dropped, and he felt quite morose. He did not want his happiness to be entwined with the happiness of others.

"What is it David?" You asked, noticing his shift in behavior.

"Would you be upset if I kissed you?" The words flew out of his mouth before he realized that he had said them.

"No." You replied, cupping David's cheek.

David turn towards you and leaned in, almost mechanically. He paused before your face, looking down at your warm lips. You leaned up and kissed him, gently holding him. David placed a delicate hand behind your head, cradling it, while placing a hand on your hip and letting his eyes closed like in the movies. His eyebrows knit as he felt the new feeling on his lips, and he felt your smile in the kiss. It was odd that humans tasted like anything, but he enjoyed the taste of your lips, and how your eyes fluttered between kisses.

You pulled away and for a moment, David felt rejected, before he heard your pants for air. He was concerned that he had hurt you until he opened his eyes and realized you were grinning. 

David smiled back, and said, "I suppose I should let you get back to sleep."

"And I bet you need to go to bed, too." You replied, caressing David's cheek. David kissed your palm lightly, and stood up.

"Thank you for your advice. Sorry for the intrusion." David said, though you didn't really think about it until later. You gave him a dazed smile, and David felt extremely accomplished in having put the smile on your face.

"You're always welcome, David. Good night." You replied, going back to bed, and David smiled fondly at you.

"Sleep tight, [y/n]." He replied, leaving his old room and deciding to head back to the lab to complete the post lab write up for the incident. 

Your presence lingered on him for hours. He could feel your lips on his, and see your smile after very clearly, without almost any effort. He charged himself at the lab bench, and thought about your conversation.

The agent should do whatever it takes to be happy.

This agent was about to do just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems as though the reader has given David an answer to all his problems, by helping him learn it by himself! Yay, David!
> 
> End Part One: 
> 
> In a Nutshell  
> Fundamental Techniques in Handling People
> 
> "I often went fishing up in Maine during the summer. Personally I am very fond of strawberries and cream, but I have found that for some strange reason, fish prefer worms. So when I went fishing, I didn't think about what I wanted. I thought about what they wanted. I didn't bait the hook with strawberries and cream. Rather, I dangled a worm or a grasshopper in front of the the fish and said: "Wouldn't you like to have that?"
> 
> Why not use common sense when fishing for people?
> 
> ...
> 
> Here is one of the best bits of advice ever given about the fine art of human relationships. "If there is any one secret of success," said Henry Ford, "it lies in the ability to get the other person's point of view and see things from that person's angle as well as your own."
> 
> ...
> 
> The world is full of people who are grabbing and self-seeking. So the rare individual who unselfishly tries to serve others has an enormous advantage. He has little competition. Owen D. Young, a noted lawyer and one of America's great business leaders, once said: "People who can put themselves in the place of other people, who can understand the workings of their minds, never need to worry about what the future has in store for them."
> 
> ...
> 
> Looking at the other person's point of view and arousing them an eager want for something is not to be construed as manipulating that person so that they will do something that is only for your benefit and their detriment. Each party should gain something from the negotiation.
> 
> ...
> 
> William Winter once remarked that "self-expression is the dominant necessity of human nature." Why can't we adapt this same psychology to business dealings? When we have a brilliant idea, instead of making others think it is ours, why not let them cook and stir the idea themselves. They will then regard it as their own; they will like it and maybe eat a couple of helpings of it.
> 
> Remember: "First, arouse in the other person an eager want. He who can do this has the whole world with him. He who cannot walks a lonely way."
> 
> Principle 3 - Arouse in the other person an eager want."  
> \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part One, Section 3
> 
> In a Nutshell: Fundamental Techniques In Handling People:  
> Principle 1: Don't criticize, condemn or complain.   
> Principle 2: Give honest and sincere appreciation.  
> Principle 3: Arouse in the other person an eager want. 
> 
> Sorry for the delay guys, I'm hoping to post more often now that I have stuff more figured out. I really hope you and your loved ones all stay safe, and that things get better soon.


	4. Do This And You'll Be Welcome Anywhere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part Two: Ways To Make People Like You 
> 
> 1\. Do This And You'll Be Welcome Anywhere  
> ie. If you like people, and show it, they will like you you too.

When you woke up again, it was almost hard. You felt like your eyes had been glued shut and you just wanted five more minuted before going to class. What if you were a couple minutes late, it's not like the professor could recognize you anyway.

Five minutes passed and no alarm sounded. Then ten, and soon you wondered if you forgot to set your alarm. Damn, you really needed to get up and see if lecture wasn't over yet.

A vague memory of kissing someone before bed tickled you mind and you wondered if you had been drinking. You probably were playing cards against humanity with your roommates. You remembered your last play of the game: you won, and it broke a three way tie for the most black cards.

_Congratulations, achievement unlocked:_

_Failed the Turing Test._

You smiled and wondered how someone could possibly fail the Turing test. Maybe if a robot fooled a human, the human failed? David did say that androids were much more realistic nowadays.

 _David!_ You shot up in your bed and looked around.

This was not your bed. This in fact was not even your room. It was the room on the spaceship that David gave you yesterday.

_David who you kissed._

You touched your lips softly before blushing and then aggressively rubbing your face with your hands in an unsuccessful effort to wipe away your emotions. You felt your stomach twist painfully with hunger, and you decided that you could probably stand to drink some water as well with how your eyes seemed to dry and glue shut every time you opened them.

You sniffed yourself and realized you could do for a shower too, but weren't sure what to change into. You messily made your bed, and looked in some of the drawers for clothes. All the clothes there seemed to be men's clothes, and one had a name stitched into it. David.

 _Is this David's room?_ You were very confused, wondering why on earth you were in his bed. He told you he had mistaken your room for his, but was this his room? Is that why he was crying? Your confusion mounted and guilt wormed into your belly. Did he have to give up his room for you? Where was he sleeping? Was he okay?

You shook your head when your belly grumbled, and you felt a little lightheaded as you stood up straight. One problem at a time. Maybe you would find David in whatever mess hall they had.

You found a piled of clean clothes next to the door with a note in clean old fashioned cursive.

_A change of clothes which should fit. Will give more soon. - David_

You caressed the note and placed it aside, folding it neatly to store in your pockets after you got washed. Your hair was crusty as though you had gelled it together, and you decided that you were just going to strip your clothes and the bed linens and find a way to wash them after your shower.

The shower was strange, and it took a frustratingly long time to figure out the controls. However, the temperature and pressure was perfectly configurable, and you were pleased by how thoroughly clean you felt afterwards.

There was a chute in the bathroom labeled laundry and you put your old clothes down the chute, and decided not to throw the linens in case they needed special treatment. The entire space reminded you vaguely of an airplane bathroom, except that you had enough space to walk around. The soap certainly smelled like airplane soap, though you did not dislike the scent. The faint powdery smell of latex reminded you of David, though you could not figure out why. Probably because he was a doctor.

You got dressed and found a spare set of sheets in a cupboard and remade the bed. You left the old sheets in a corner and tucked the note from David into your breast pocket, and memorized the room number. C12. Now you would know which room was yours when you went back.

You wandered through the seemingly identical hallways and chose your path at random, occasionally noting the door signs until you ran into a jovial looking man who reminded you of one of the academic staff in the Anthropology department at your university.

"Lookin' for the mess hall?" He asked, smiling with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"Yea, my name's [y/n], by the way." You said, holding out your hand to shake.

"Janek." Janek gave you a hesitant smile, and shook your hand amicably.

"They tell me David found you in the compound." He said with a mix of curiosity and apprehension.

"Yea, he did, but I have no idea how I got there." You replied, following him into an elevator looking compartment.

"Well what do you remember?" He asked, pressing on the button labeled 'M'.

"I went home for winter break. Everything aside from that is a little iffy." You said, remembering your dream. You didn't remember playing Cards before you left.

"Yea, waking up from cryosleep was rough for me too. How long you been under?" He replied, glazing over your troubled expression.

"Since 2020." You replied, smiling up at him.

"Hm. I knew I would see strange things out here, but I never thought I would meet a woman my grandmother's age out in space lookin' not a day over twenty." He joked, showing you into the large recreational room.

"Well I suppose you can add abducted by aliens to the list." You joked back, only to notice the entire mess hall go silent.

At first you wanted to hide from the shielded judging eyes of the rest of the crew, but you decided to grab some food and sit next to the only other familiar face you knew - Holloway your mind supplied. "So what are the options?" You turned back to Janek, who eyed the crew before looking back at you.

"Well the food was all packed two years ago so it's not spectacular, but the smoothies are delicious. The coffee is not bad either."

You nodded, looking at the revolving set of dishes and grabbing the eggs with french toast. This was usually a safe bet in the messhalls, and you would have been surprised if it weren't here. You also grabbed a matcha milkshake, and decided you would go back for coffee if you felt like it.

"Well little lady, I gotta get back to work, but I enjoyed talkin' to ya." He said, giving you a smile.

"Of course, thanks for showing me to the messhall. I enjoyed talking to you." You replied. cheerful to have another familiar face to talk to. By now normal conversation had more or less resumed in the lounge. You figured that they had seen odder things over the last couple of days.

"No problem, see ya." Janek turned and left, and you approached Holloway, and realized that he was looking at an archaeological paper.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" You asked, feeling almost like you were in school again.

Holloway looked up, with a mix of surprise and friendliness, "Not at all, but unless you know something about these artifacts, I don't really think that we'll be able to talk much."

"What are the artifacts?" You asked, cutting through the syrup soaked toast.

"Aegean Sealstones." He replied.

"Really? Helladic or Minoan?" You asked, interest piqued. With all the breadth classes you were utilizing over the last few days, you didn't want to ever hear they were a waste of time again.

Holloway looked up at you with interest, "Late Minoan. I'm looking at seal stones from the Griffin Warrior's tomb." He turned his pad over to you.

"Middle to late Helladic, actually. There's no concrete evidence that the Combat Agate was made off the mainland." You replied, noticing the strange formation in the background of the infamous scene of the man with long curled locks driving a spear into the chest of the man wielding a cowhide shield.

"The excavators thought that it was made in Crete. It certainly is in a Minoan style." He replied, testing you.

"People can move. A Minoan could have made it on the mainland. The scene is very unusual anyway, suggesting it might have been commissioned by a mainlander. It's very similar to the kind of narrative scenes from epics like the Iliad you might find in classical pieces. But like this kind of violence hadn't really been found in Minoan pieces up until this excavation. It suggests that the theme was Mycenaean. It's kinda the same deal for the Vaphaio cups too." You replied.

"What about the stars in the background, what do you make of that." He replied, circling the formation you saw.

"Those are additions after the excavation. I think that they would have been mentioned as part of some story if they were on the seal stone originally." You replied, disgusted that someone had marked up this piece of history.

Holloway's demeanor shifted and darkened. "That's impossible. Who would have even been able to mark it without getting arrested? How could they possibly know the formation to mark?"

You were very confused. Unless the stars were part of the narrative, you didn't really know why they would be included in the first place. In any case, you had seen pictures of it and it showed up in Expedition Unknown. "We could check the site publishing. Or the episode on the Griffin Warrior tomb from Expedition Unknown. I'm pretty sure there were no stars originally. I mean it's not like Sharon and Jack Davis would have let anyone touch the integrity of the agate, it was one of the biggest finds of Mycenaean history."

"Looking through the books for this one agate could take hours." Holloway replied, frustrated.

"And if its inconsistent and someone put holes into a three and a half thousand year old artifact, it would be a travesty not to investigate." You replied, not realizing that that symbol is exactly what Holloway had been chasing for years.

"Investigate what?" You heard a calculating, curious voice behind you.

"She thinks that some of the artifacts look different than how she remembers them." Holloway said dismissively.

"On the topic of what you remember, I want you to come to my quarters and tell me everything you know about the Engineers, this planet, and that structure." The icy blonde said, indicating that you should follow her.

"Of course. I'll help you review the documentation later if you want, Charlie. I'm sure there's a logical explanation." Charlie nodded, looking dazed and went back to work.

You put away your dishes and followed Vickers wordlessly to her quarters. They were large and a little overwhelming. There was scenery of the Grand Canyon on a wall sized screen ahead of you, some sort of operating table to your right, a bar to your left and a grand piano too.

"You have everything your need right here." You said, a little confused.

"Correct. I have a self sustaining module in case I face a hostile environment. I like to keep things under control." Vickers replied, and the door shut behind you. You noticed her appraising you, and you stood up straighter.

"Then why let me aboard?" You asked, stepping forward and observing the room. You figured Vickers wouldn't hold a higher regard for you if you stood nervously in front of her and stuttered through your answers. It helped to keep occupied.

"Because you might know something about the Engineers." She replied, pouring herself some vodka at the bar. You sat down on the couch and bit your lip.

"I wish I did. I'm pretty sure a decent chunk of my memory is missing, and as far as I know I've been here for seventy years." You replied honestly.

"I want to know why you are here." Vickers states looking at you pointedly. You could tell that if you kept rambling she would snap. Your mind worked a mile a minute - she had a point, why were you here? How could a perfectly normal person end up in a situation like this? What happened in the time between winter break and whatever kidnapping weirdness that took place that got you to this planet? Why the _fuck_ is all you can think about that stupid Cards game.

You grimaced and weighed your options. If you lied, she would probably figure it out and get angry. If you said nothing, she would get angry. If you told her the truth - that there was no real truth you could give, she would get angry. Your eyebrows knotted and you said, "I don't know. I was a college student, and not the best one at that, and I had an interest in AI and Greek Mythology. Who are the engineers?"

"You're not really in a place to ask questions." She stated, plopping down across from you. You got strangely predatory vibes from her and you were a little bewildered at how anxious it made you.

"And I can't give you answers if I don't know what you are talking about." You shifted your posture to be less defensive, "I mean why here? Why this planet? How did you know that there would be something here, let alone another human? It doesn't make sense." Your words were firm but not accusatory, and you didn't know whether Vickers would blow a gasket or she would take you seriously.

"It's something I'd like to figure out too. What were you talking about with Holloway?" She shifted the conversation and looked instead at the shifting perspective on the Grand Canyon on the screen ahead.

You figured it must be some sort of newer type of screen because as you shifted in your spot, the image shifted to accommodate you. It was strange, and the height of the perspective made you a tad nauseous. "He was looking over a picture of the Combat Agate - an artifact from the tomb of the Griffin Warrior near Pylos. It had a weird star combination on it that wasn't there when I saw it."

"You saw the stone?" She said, looking at you.

"I saw pictures of the stone. But if there was a constellation on the agate, it would have been mentioned in the papers on the tomb as part of whatever narrative the Agate depicts. I don't think it was there. Otherwise it would have been mentioned and I would have remembered it." You responded.

"So someone tampered with the stone?" Vickers asked, and you grimaced because it sounded too simplistic.

"I think so, and we should be able to verify it by going through the site documentation." You responded, watching the screen shift to something that looked like Zion National Park.

"And you're sure the constellation wasn't there." She asked again, and you nodded.

"I am, and I can do the checking if you think it's a waste of time. Then at least I'm just wasting my time and no one else's." You responded, and she seemed deep in thought. The proposal sounded good in your head but sounded very arrogant out loud. You sincerely hoped she would perceive your less than subdued behavior for excitement as opposed to outright aggression.

"We are on a moon in that constellation, and you think that the constellation was forged onto some artifacts?" Vickers asked wearily, shooting the rest of her whisky.

"Well whatever grabbed me had more than half a century to do it." You replied. Vickers looked at you appraising you once more. 

"Are you scared?" She asked, looking tired.

"Not really." You stated, leaning back into the couch finally. She turned back forward and relaxed.

"Good." She stated simply.

The door opened and you heard soft familiar footfalls. You turned back and smiled at David who had just entered Vickers' quarters.

"I have just finished the report for the Engineer skull, madam. Both Shaw and Ford are currently studying it." David's smooth voice relayed, as he gave you a soft smile as if to say, _Talk to you in a moment._

You looked back at Vickers and waited for her orders.

"Good. I want you to brief [y/n] as well on what happened." Vickers responded, placing her glass on the table.

"[Y/n], David will help you with your investigation. I want a full report by 20:00 hours." Vickers stated. You gave her a questioning look as you moved to pick up her glass. Her presence seemed to command fealty from those around her. She inclined her head but did not disagree, and you took it as a yes.

"I'll first look into the Combat Agate and then investigate the other sites." You responded, going to David. David quickly took the glass from you and placed it in the cleaning station.

"I want you to find as much as you can." She said, never changing her facing.

"I will." You replied, and you and David moved to leave.

"And David?" Vickers' voice called.

"Yes ma'am?" He responded, blinking in her direction.

"For both of our interests, this should be off the record."

David gave you a questioning look. "Yes ma'am."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reader warms up ice queen Vickers - oooooh.
> 
> "Why read this book to find out how to win friends? Why not study the technique of the greatest winner of friends the world has ever known? Who is he? You may meet him tomorrow coming down the street. When you get within ten feet of him, he will begin to wag his tail. If you stop and pat him, he will almost jump out of his skin to show you how much he likes you. And you know that behind this show of affection on his part, there are no ulterior motives: he doesn't want to sell you any real estate, and he doesn't want to marry you.
> 
> Did you ever stop to think that a dog is the only animal that doesn't have to work for a living? A hen has to lay eggs, a cow has to give milk, and a canary has to sing. But a dog makes his living by giving you nothing but love.
> 
> ...
> 
> You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you. 
> 
> Yet I know and you know people who blunder through life trying to wigwag other people into becoming interested in them. Of course, it doesn't work. 
> 
> People are not interested in you. They are not interested in me. They are interested in themselves - morning, noon and after dinner.
> 
> ...
> 
> It is the individual who is not interested in his fellow men who has the greatest difjculties in life and provides the greutest injury to others. It is from umong such individuals that all humun failures spring.
> 
> ...
> 
> He said he could pick up any one of the dozens of stories that drifted across his desk every day and after reading a few paragraphs he could feel whether or not the author liked people. "If the author doesn't like people," he said, "people won't like his or her stories." 
> 
> ...
> 
> That, too, was one of the secrets of Theodore Roosevelt's astonishing popularity. Even his servants loved him. His valet, James E. Amos, wrote a book about him entitled Theodore Roosevelt, Hero to His Valet. In that book Amos relates this illuminating incident: 
> 
> My wife one time asked the President about a bobwhite. She had never seen one and he described it to her fully. Sometime later, the telephone at our cottage rang. [Amos and his wife lived in a little cottage on the Roosevelt estate at Oyster Bay.] My wife answered it and it was Mr. Roosevelt himself. He had called her, he said, to tell her that there was a bobwhite outside her window and that if she would look out she might see it. Little things like that were so characteristic of him. 
> 
> ...
> 
> "When he saw Alice, the kitchen maid," writes Archie Butt, "he asked her if she still made corn bread. Alice told him that she sometimes made it for the servants, but no one ate it upstairs. 
> 
> "'They show bad taste,' Roosevelt boomed, 'and I'll tell the President so when I see him.'
> 
> "Alice brought a piece to him on a plate, and he went over to the office eating it as he went and greeting gardeners and laborers as he passed. . . 
> 
> "He addressed each person just as he had addressed them in the past. Ike Hoover, who had been head usher at the White House for forty years, said with tears in his eyes: 'It is the only happy day we had in nearly two years, and not one of us would exchange it for a hundred-dollar bill.' "
> 
> ...
> 
> For years I made it a point to find out the birthdays of my friends. How? Although I haven't the foggiest bit of faith in astrology, I began by asking the other party whether he believed the date of one's birth has anything to do with character and disposition. I then asked him or her to tell me the month and day of birth. If he or she said November 24, for example, I kept repeating to myself, "November 24, November 24." The minute my friend's back was turned, I wrote down the name and birthday and later would transfer it to a birthday book. At the beginning of each year, I had these birthday dates scheduled in my calendar pad so that they came to my attention automatically. When the natal day arrived, there was my letter or telegram. What a hit it made! I was frequently the only person on earth who remembered.
> 
> ... a long time ago, a hundred years before Christ was born a famous old Roman poet, Publilius Syrus, remarked; "We are interested in others when they are interested in us." 
> 
> A show of interest, as with every other principle of human relations, must be sincere. It must pay off not only for the person showing the interest, but for the person receiving the attention. It is a two-way street - both parties benefit. 
> 
> ...
> 
> If you want others to like you, if you want to develop real friendships, if you want to help others at the same time as you help yourself, keep this principle in mind: 
> 
> Principle 1 - Become genuinely interested in other people."  
> \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part Two, Section 1


	5. A Simple Way to Make a Good Impression

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2\. A Simple Way to Make a Good Impression  
> ie. a smile can be worth a million dollars  
> Sorry for the late update - my final projects for school took a lot more time than I thought they would. Hopefully I can make up for it with a double update!
> 
> Also, first sex scene of the story!

As you walked away from Vickers' room your mind swam with speculation about everything - the constellation, the 'Engineers', researching the agate, your memory, David, the fact that it was 2092 - everything. You more or less numbly followed behind David, not really noticing that he had not said a word to you since finding you with Vickers.

You sighed lightly and examined your thoughts as they entered your head and ordered them by importance.

You needed to find evidence of the agate before it was marked. This would then act as your earliest possible date for the tampering of the archaeological material.

Then you would have to go through all the subsequent publications and figure out about when the constellation had appeared on the agate.

Then you would need to repeat the process for all the archaeological material that was used as evidence for this mission. Oh boy.

While you did this, you would have to grill everyone you could about the Engineers, the structure, and you would have to grill David in particular about what he saw when he found you.

You were also going to have to address the fact that you kissed him yesterday. Part of you was happy to be near him, and another part was afraid he would reject you, especially considering the fact that were going to be stuck together for hours.

"What did Vickers say to you?" David asked softly, looking back at you with a tender expression. You remembered your conversation from earlier regarding Vickers. You felt a flutter when you realized David was concerned for you.

"She wanted to know why I was here. To be honest, I want to know too David." You replied. David considered your expression for a moment before continuing the journey to the archive.

"Then we'll have to find out." He replied. You frowned and bit your lip, trying to figure out what he was thinking. Was he worried? Mad? Happy? Sad? You were never the best judge of emotion, but with David, it was even harder to figure out what he was thinking. Despite this, somehow the moments you spent with David just felt _right_.

You stomach twisted at the thought. With everything else going on, you hoped you wouldn't have to deal with the confusing cocktail of emotions that embodied love for you. You didn't want to deal with the extra complexity, and you certainly did not want to lose David before even really getting to know him in the first place.

David opened a door at the end of a hall and revealed a small room filled with textbooks with a small table, a couple chairs, a couch, and a screen in the back. As soon as David shut the door, you were slammed into the wall and David's hungry lips were devouring yours.

David crowded you in, pressing you firmly against the wall and leaving you barely enough room for your chest to expand with your pants. Mint and latex. David tasted like mint and latex. He smelled like it too.

Your train of thought was swept away by the feeling of his hands unzipping your jacket and roaming down your front, and lifting up your shirt.

You shivered from the feel of cool air hitting your exposed belly, and David pulled back and observed you. David looked nervous, afraid almost, and concerned as he examined you shudder.

You blinked away your lust, wondering why he stopped, before looking into his eyes. Those beautiful gray eyes. The way his beautiful face looked at you, concerned but for the most part placid, made his appearance was almost doll-like. You realized he wasn't panting. In fact he wasn't even breathing at all. The memory of the glowing wrist came back to you and you realized that he wasn't human.

Part of you was shocked, but another part reminded you that you owed him your life. He had been so gentle with you, saving you from the structure and nursing you back to health after collapsing in the hanger. He even let you comfort him when he was upset. Oh David.

"David?" You called quietly. You didn't know what to say, but you did know that you cared deeply for him, android or no.

David drank in your flushed cheeks and disheveled appearance. "Are you well?" He asked.

You nodded and leaned towards him, circling your arms around his waist and pressing your head against his chest. David placed a large hand on your soft head, and used his other arm to hold you against him gently.

"I-I must apologize for my behavior. I should not have acted without your permission." David said, shocked that he had actually kissed you like that in the archive.

You smiled up at him mischievously, and said, "Well now you have my permission to do _whatever_ you want."

You didn't care anymore that you were in a public room or that anyone could walk in at anytime. David couldn't just assault you with a kiss like that and expect you to just go back to work. You saw David's face slacken as he ran a hand up your thigh before leaning back in and whispering in your ear, "Are you certain?"

You cupped his cheek and gave him a feather-light kiss, and nodded.

The next few moments were some of the most confusing but pleasurable moments in your life. David pulled off your clothes and lay your bare body on the couch, unzipping the front of his trousers, letting his cock free of it's constraining clothes. As David lowered himself, it fell on top of your lower belly and dragged lubricant across your skin as you squirmed underneath him.

David was huge. You weren't even sure he would fit. Your hand reached down and you stroked him gently, before guiding his face to yours for a kiss. David was incredibly tender and a part of you wondered how truly different he could be if he could show you so much care. David returned your kiss and reached down to your heat and used his big fingers to tease you apart gently.

He needed to be gentle with you. He promised both you and himself no harm should befall you. He thought about how you would react if you found out he was an android and he froze, pulling away slightly. How could you truly consent to this if you didn't even know who and what he was?

"David?" The blond heard your gentle voice in his ear.

"I'm-I'm not-" David stammered unsure of what to say. What was the logic of embarrassment? Of all the human traits to pick up, why this one? Why now?

"I know David. I don't care what you are. You're kind and thoughtful, and you've been nothing but gentle with me since I've met you." You said softly, hoping to ease his burden.

David's eyes flew open. "You don't care that I'm not human?"

You shook your head. "No."

David pressed his forehead to yours and sighed. "Thank you."

You smiled and kissed him gently. "I wouldn't have you any other way."

David found it difficult to control his excitement. Part of him was confused that your confession ignited such a strong response from him. Another part began recalculating the probabilities of success of various plans given this new, extremely optimal, information. The rest of his conscious mind was intent on having you right now. His cock stiffened at the thought, and he heard you pant softly between kisses and felt your little whimpers on his lips as he kissed you. David felt a jolt of curiosity as he realized this could be a good opportunity to learn more about human anatomy in person.

He ran his hand down your chest, gauging your reaction, before moving his lips to your cheek and then your throat, kissing you softly. You were appreciative that he was being gentle, but after coming onto you so quickly, your body was ready for him _now_. He would have plenty of time to satisfy his curiosity after. You rolled up your body against him and he stiffened, before continuing as he was before. You whimpered needily, and spread your legs for him, rolling into him again to try to get across that you wanted him _now_.

"David, please." You whined, hoping he would oblige you.

"What would you like me to do?" He asked gently hoping to ease the tension off your face. It was strangely erotic and upsetting that you were whining and writhing underneath him. Part of him was exhilarated by the fact that he had you captured in his arms while the rest of him was distinctly concerned that you were distressed.

"I want you to fuck me David." You stated, bucking yourself into him.

David used a firm grasp to steady your hips before pumping himself and lining himself up. "Please let me know if you feel any discomfort."

You suddenly felt ashamed for being so needy, and were overcome with a mix of emotions about not wanting to force him into having sex with you. "Don't feel pressured into doing something you don't want to David."

David felt incredulous for a moment, wondering how you could possibly feel as though you were pressuring him into anything. He wanted this, badly, and he realized that he would have used any means necessary to eventually have it. David gave you a satisfied smirk as he leaned closer over you and gently caught you face to make look at him.

"I desire you. I want to hear you shout my name. I want to see your face when you cum. I want to please you, darling." David's even voice was tinged with something vaguely predatory, and you shuddered. You nodded vigorously, and tried to relax as David pushing himself inside you.

It didn't hurt, but you almost felt short of breath when he was inside you completely. He made you feel so full, that it made your mind loose track of almost everything else. David placed a soft kiss on your neck as he rocked his hips forward, pushing you into the couch pillows.

You gripped David tightly, and let out a shaky breath.

"You're so big, David." You mumbled your thoughts into his ear, and felt his heavy cock slide out slowly before slamming back in. You yelped, and felt a jolt of warmth go right down your legs all the way into your toes.

"Did that hurt?" David asked, and you shook your head.

"Again David, please." You whispered, and were greeted with another powerful thrust.

"Would you like me to continue?" He asked, his lips brushing against your ear.

"Yes, please, David. Fuck me." You whined, and David kissed you softly as he thrust into you at a hard pace.

You gripped David, burying your face in his shoulder for strength and locked your legs behind his waist to hold yourself steady. As David continued, you moan and gasped his name, trying to stay quiet and focusing only on his hard thrusts. David kissed you softly, letting out harsh gasps as he felt you tighten around him. 

David wasn't sure what to say or what to do. His experience in this matter was limited to Vickers, and he had never actually desired doing this to a human before. When he thrust into you, you pushed yourself into him, using the comfort his embrace brought to deal with the overwhelming barrage of erotic stimulus. David found that he had a deep seated desire to protect you, and began shushing you and praising you gently as you took his throbbing cock.

David sensed that what he was giving you was pleasurable but it wasn't enough to make you cum. He moved to change your positions, before you clung to him tightly and whimpered, "Please David, don't go."

David felt a surge of protectiveness and sympathy, and enveloped you into a tight embrace, holding you as close as possible to his body without crushing you. "I'm not going anywhere."

His piston-like thrusts continued harder now, and faster, and he felt you begin to tremble in his arms.

"David! Ah- David. I'm gonna cum!" You were inadvertently yelling now and David smirked, letting himself feel accomplished as he brought you to your climax. You jerked suddenly, and David felt your soft walls clench around his cock, squeezing an eruption from him. David sighed, gripping your hair and shoulder tightly, emptying himself into you. He felt you go limp in his embrace and snuggle into him, and David felt what he assumed was contentment.

His hold on you loosened so that you could adjust yourself, but remained firm. You looked up sleepily at him and said, "That was amazing David, thank you."

Apparently you were still pretty worn out from your cryosleep and sudden illness afterwards, because you fell asleep fairly quickly after. It certainly did not help that David was a very comfortable pillow, and he radiated the perfect amount of warmth. David observed you carefully, feeling a bit guilty that he had been so rough with you so soon after you had recovered from your illness. You were cute, he thought briefly, observing your cheeks squished against his clothing. David undid his jacket carefully and wrapped it around you gently as to not disturb your rest. He also increased the temperature to an appropriate level so that you would not be cold as you slept.

He always experienced a certain post coital clarity which made him wish to engage in productive endeavors. As an android, it didn't really matter that he couldn't move from underneath you to do his job. He could simply run the necessary queries, applications, and calculations from his mind.

Over the course of the last two years, he engaged in a variety of activities that improved the efficiency of the ship and it's memory databases in an effort the stave off the peculiar emotion he concluded was boredom. He reasoned that the emotion was to be expected as it was rational, after all, to pursue productive tasks even when there were none immediately available. It was what encouraged him to learn basketball and cycling, and watch movies and maintain his appearance. It also compelled him to rewire the central power grid of the ship, optimize the code for both the ship's database systems and the navigation's operating system, scan all the hard copy books in the library by reading them, and most importantly configuring each system on board to interface with his mind directly. Therefore, he could do more than 95% of his work remotely without ever so much as lifting a finger.

He was also able to view pretty much any security footage onboard the vessel without acquiring additional permissions. So, feeling quite motivated, he reviewed your conversation with Holloway, and then began scan through the files on board for the combat agate, and then began identifying a timeline for when the constellation was added onto the artifact. 

You were correct. There were a total of 14 images of the Combat Agate in 348 separate published articles, books, websites, shows, and other media. The first three pictures, the latest dating to late 2019, had no trace of the constellation, and the fourth, dating to 2042, had the constellation.

He then reviewed the other artifacts, inscriptions, paintings, and other archaeological evidence for the Engineer constellation. All the pieces that were discovered by the early 21st century retained evidence that they were tampered with. Moreover, a comparative analysis yielded that the constellation was likely drawn by the same hand across all of the pieces. Assuming the perpetrator marked all of the pieces at a similar time, they were likely to have done so in the early 2020s.

David then began perusing the histories of each of the portable artifacts to see if they were ever housed in proximity with each other.

He was shocked to see that they were all in the British Museum as of early 2020. Several of the pieces were on loan as part of a cultural diversity exhibition from the Louvre and various other museums across Europe and the rest of the Mediterranean. There was an exhibition on the Aztec, Maya, and Incan empires that was touring at the same time, and the rest of the pieces were undergoing 3D imaging scans and were thus also in the museum as part of an ongoing effort to document pieces using new technologies. He calculated that travelling from London to the cave in the Isle of Skye would take approxiamately a day and a half, assuming the traveler stayed over night in Portree before making the final trek by car and by foot.

Though much of the evidence for the simultaneous marking of the objects was circumstantial, Occam's razor demanded that the most likely scenario was the one where someone with access to the Museum and it's laboratories marked all of these pieces. Given the fact that the Coronavirus outbreak forced a worldwide shutdown just before some of the pieces sent to the Museum for 3D imaging and analysis, it was hypothetically possible that the researchers' grants had been pulled before they were able to continue research on the artifacts, thereby being unable to report the new marks in an official setting.

David further mused, even if they were able to document the damage and report it to the appropriate authorities, it was unlikely the damage could have been investigated until well after the outbreak had ended. Several pieces in the museum, and around the world, were stolen during the confusion of the epidemic, and limited ability to respond to the theft rendered most difficult to reacquire, and many lost indefinitely. David recognized several of the stolen artifact had ended up in Mr. Weyland's possession, including the original artifact Shaw and Holloway used to begin their project more than six years prior.

Though the initial question of whether the artifacts had been tampered with had been answered, the next most obvious questions of when and why remained circumstantial and dubious at best. David collect his thoughts in a formal report and noted that it was almost 16:00 hours. He reasoned that you would awake soon, and then David would have just enough time to escort you back to your room for a shower and retrieve a meal for you to eat as he debriefed you on his recent findings, the mission goal of the Prometheus, and the current status of the research on the Engineers. He would then escort you to Vickers' chambers and present the findings to Vickers, and receive his next orders.

David looked down at you as you shifted in his grasp. He wondered if you were dreaming. He wondered what it would be like to dream. He held you softly until you woke up.

It didn't take long. You were already half awake by the time he had finished your report and you looked up at him sleepily and smiled.

"Hello." He said gently, smiling softly at you.

"Hi." You responded, stretching and sitting up. David watched you, enchanted, and let his arm go from wrapped around your shoulders to carefully holding your waist. David's coat slipped from your shoulders and you stretched, realizing you had work to do.

"Oh no, what time is it?" You asked, looking down in concern. 

David smiled, and said, "It's nearly 16:00 hours. I've completed an initial analysis of the material already and have concluded with a relatively high certainty that they were indeed tampered with. I suggest we go back to your room so that you may change and I can explain more there."

"Aw, David, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you do all the work." You replied, frustrated at yourself. You began picking up your clothes and slipping them on.

"You required rest, [y/n], and you were the one who proposed the research in the first place. I believe I was better suited to complete this task alone in the first place." David replied, holding out your bra for you to put on. 

You frowned at his statement and felt bad. You knew he would probably be better equipped to research than you, but it stung to hear him say it out loud. Now you not only felt like a slacker, but also felt incompetent too. He helped you adjust the straps and placed a kiss on your shoulder.

"I must admit, I don't believe I would have thought of the constellation being forged on my own. Moreover, I found that after our little dance, I was far more focused than I would have been otherwise, so your presence was crucial for our research today." David placed another kiss on your neck and then finally one on your cheek.

You sighed and pulled on your shirt, before turning around. You cupped David's cheek while giving him a weary look. As much fun as your dalliance was, you were still uncomfortable with David taking on your work. David leaned into your hand gently and you hugged him, feeling the warmth of his body beneath your skin.

"Thank you, David." You said quietly, and you felt his arms hold you.

"You are welcome." David smiled down at you with a touch of pride in his expression. He seemed utterly pleased with your situation, and you found that regardless of how guilty you felt, it was hard to resist sharing his pleasure.

"You know, David, it makes me happy when you smile." You remarked gently, running a thumb over his lips.

"Then I shall always smile for you." He replied. One hand slipped down to your waist and all thoughts of taking a shower or hearing about David's research or getting dinner flitted from your mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> David learns the power of a simple smile!
> 
> "... Actions speak louder than words, and a smile says, "I like you, You make me happy. I am glad to see you." That is why dogs make such a hit. They are so glad to see us that they almost jump out of their skins. So, naturally, we are glad to see them. 
> 
> ...
> 
> An insincere grin? No. That doesn't fool anybody. We know it is mechanical and we resent it. I am talking about a real smile, a heartwarming smile, a smile that comes from within, the kind of smile that will bring a good price in the marketplace. 
> 
> ...
> 
> "1 have been married for over eighteen years," wrote Mr. Steinhardt,
> 
> "and in all that time I seldom smiled at my wife or spoke two dozen words to her from the time I got up until I was ready to leave for business. I was one of the worst grouches who ever walked down Broadway.
> 
> "When you asked me to make a talk about my experience with smiles, I thought I would try it for a week. So the next morning, while combing my hair, I looked at my glum mug in the mirror and  
> said to myself, 'Bill, you are going to wipe the scowl off that sour puss of yours today. You are going to smile. And you are going to begin right now.' As I sat down to breakfast, I greeted my wife with a 'Good morning, my dear,' and smiled as I said it.
> 
> "You warned me that she might be surprised. Well, you underestimated her reaction. She was bewildered. She was shocked. I told her that in the future she could expect this as a regular occurrence, and I kept it up every morning.
> 
> "This changed attitude of mine brought more happiness into our home in the two months since I started than there was during the last year.
> 
> ...
> 
> You don't feel like smiling? Then what? Two things. First, force yourself to smile. If you are alone, force yourself to whistle or hum a tune or sing. Act as if you were already happy, and that will tend to make you happy. Here is the way the psychologist and philosopher William James put it:
> 
> "Action seems to follow feeling, but really action and feeling go together; and by regulating the action, which is under the more direct control of the will, we can indirectly regulate the feeling, which is not.
> 
> "Thus the sovereign voluntary path to cheerfulness, if our cheerfulness be lost, is to sit up cheerfully and to act and speak as if cheerfulness were already there. ..." 
> 
> Every body in the world is seeking happiness - and there is one sure way to find it. That is by controlling your thoughts. Happiness doesn't depend on outward conditions. It depends on inner conditions. 
> 
> ...
> 
> "There is nothing either good or bad," said Shakespeare, "but thinking makes it so."
> 
> ...
> 
> It costs nothing, but creates much. It enriches those who receive, without impoverishing those who give. It happens in a flash and the memory of it sometimes lasts forever, None are so rich they can get along without it, and none so poor but are richer for its benefits. It creates happiness in the home, fosters good will in a business, and is the countersign of friends. It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and Nature's best antidote fee  
> trouble. Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is no earthly good to anybody till it is given away. And if in the last-minute rush of Christmas buying some of our salespeople should be too tired to give you a smile, may we ask you to leave one of yours? For nobody needs a smile so much as those who have none left to give!
> 
> Principle 2 - Smile."  
> \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part Two, Section 2


	6. If You Don't Do This, You Are Headed For Trouble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3\. If You Don't Do This, You Are Headed For Trouble  
> ie. The least you could do is remember their name.

After the last round between you and David, you scrambled to pick up your clothes as David continued to kiss your neck and back. Finally, between putting on your pants and tightening your belt, David let you go to pick up the rest of your clothes. 

"David, what time is it?" You asked, pulling on your shirt and throwing on your jacket.

"16:47. I suggest we make our way to your quarters." He replied, making himself presentable and then smoothing out your hair.

"Thank you, David." You replied, before fixing his hair as well. David seemed to be thoroughly distracted by your presence and the intensity of his stare almost made you uncomfortable.

"I'm not really sure how to get back." You said, as you looked around to see that nothing was amiss. David seemed to snap out of his reverie, and he smiled at you opening the door.

"I shall guide you then." He said, leading you through the ship. Part of you realized that David enjoyed doing favors for you tremendously and now that you had indulged him on something you really should have done yourself, he was likely going to keep up his behavior indefinitely. Another part of you was thoroughly charmed that he insisted on taking such good care of you, and wanted nothing more than to spend all your time with him.

Soon enough you were back in your quarters and you realized you had meant to ask David about whether this was his room.

"David?" You called gently, the door closing behind you.

"Hmm?" He responded, a smile still dancing on his lips and in his eyes. The glee he so obviously felt quieted a bit when he saw your troubled expression.

"Was this your room David?" You asked, wringing your hands a little nervously. You didn't know what exactly made you nervous, but you felt very bad that David had to give up his space for you.

"I do not require a room." He said gently, noticing your unease.

"I know, but was this your space? A private place for you?" You asked, pacing to the books.

"Yes, in a manner of speaking." He replied, following you slowly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know." You replied, not exactly knowing what to say.

"There's nothing to be sorry for. You require a bed, and I estimated the probability of being assigned this space as quite high when I retrieved you from the structure." He replied, observing you carefully.

"Then would you like to share this space? I know it's not the same as getting your room back, but I still feel like you should have some level of privacy and sense of ownership on board." You suggested, hoping to ease some of your guilt.

David pondered the proposal for a moment and tilted his head at you as he thought. You were right, he _would_ like some privacy on the ship. The thought of being able to command some space that he could call almost purely his own also appealed to him. Moreover, the idea of sharing this space evoked no territorial thoughts or unpleasant emotions. In fact, he would be quite pleased to spend his downtime with you. "I would be glad to share this space with you."

You smiled at David before trying to press on to your next topic of discomfort, "David, I can't possibly thank you enough for how you've taken care of me over the last few days. I don't want to take advantage of you, and I don't want to overburden you or cause your work to suffer. I especially don't want you to get punished for helping me. I'll let you know if I need help with something, but I don't want you to burden yourself with taking care of me."

David gripped the sides of your face and leaned forward. "Nothing I have done for you has added extensive work to my current assignments. Do not worry about my actions over the last few days. The were actions taken of my own accord. Moreover, I believe your well being ranks foremost in my priorities and as such any action I take to help you is no way a burden." David kissed you hastily, and you smiled.

"Still, I don't want you to do anything you don't want to." You replied, hoping he got the gist of your plea.

"That sentiment is exactly what makes you so deserving of my attention." He responded, smiling as he stepped away.

You looked down at the books in your room, and smiled as you saw one of your favorites. "How to Win Friends and Influence People," you picked up the small book, "have you read this, David?"

"I have not." He replied, observing you flip through the book. He had read many of the personal items aboard the ship, but the ones in your room were the ones he had stolen and yet to have read.

"I think you should read it, David. It's like a manual for human interaction. Even though it's really silly sometimes, it's an entertaining read and the suggestions it makes are really simple and work quite well." You said handing it back over.

"I shall then. Perhaps you should get changed for dinner. I can debrief you once you are finished on the latest excursion and the Engineer dissection as well as our findings from earlier today." He replied, procuring another uniform and set of underwear from a drawer in the corner of the room and handing it to you.

"Alright, thanks David." You went back to take a quick shower and get changes.

David sat in the booth next to the book stand and flipped through it. The titles were quite vague, and he did not understand why the advice could not just be summarized in the first paragraph. Frowning vaguely, he settled on reading a chapter titled _If You Don't Do This, You Are Headed For Trouble_. As he read through the silly anecdotes and short stories, David quickly realized what the point of the chapter. David supposed that he was lucky enough to have a relatively perfect memory and that he had no trouble recalling the names of those aboard the ship. He realized then, that perhaps he could extend the advice to general topics of interest of each individual and use that as a way to establish familiarity.

It was not long before he heard the water shut off and you get dressed in the bathroom. He put down the book for later and decided that the content may prove to be extremely useful going forward.

You stepped out, looking rather pleased at being clean, and sat down next to David.

"Shall I begin with the expedition?" David asked, looking at you amiably.

"Can you please start with the purpose of the mission? I still don't quite understand what's going on, or where we are, or how we got here really." You said meekly, looking rather embarrassed.

Instead of annoyance, David looked rather pleased that he had to explain more to you. And explain he did - you realized that even though David was awake for all two years of the journey, learning and decrypting ancient languages and spending considerable time theorizing about the mission, he could not understand much about the nature of the engineers or why exactly Shaw, Holloway, and Weyland believed that they might be gods. David also talked about the structure - the symbols which looked like a cross between cuneiform and heiroglyphs, the existence of the map, how he found you, and your narrow escape from the structure. He also commented that it was not unlikely that the structure was in fact a spaceship - though undoubtedly a strange one. Finally he recounted the dissection of the Engineer's head, and laughed about the fact that it had exploded, and how it scared everyone else in the room.

"Wait, it really just exploded?" You asked, incredulous.

"Yes, we couldn't get it to stop twitching. It let off this awful smell and it took almost an hour of cleaning to get sickbay back to normal." He responded with mirth. He was glad you were not afraid of the Engineers like everyone else on the ship seemed to be.

"Do you think the head could have spread some sort of disease? A bad smell sounds like bad news." You asked, mildly concerned.

"Potentially. However, we decontaminated the head, and none present show any symptoms of any kind." David said, also thoughtful, "I began running some samples after the lab. I should be able to report on the findings after dinner."

"What did you find regarding the archaeological pieces?" You asked, wanting to wrap up your debriefing so that you could get dinner.

"That the constellation was an early twenty-first century addition and that the pieces were all in or in relatively close proximity of the British Museum in the spring of 2020. It is circumstantial evidence, certainly, but given more evidence, I suspect we can establish that was when the constellation additions were made. The question however, remains as to why this occurred." David concluded, standing up.

"Come, it is almost 19:00 hours. I shall escort you to the mess hall for dinner, and will pick you up at 19:45." David said, offering you a hand to get up. You took it happily and followed David down the hall, through the lift and to the mess hall. You immediately recognized Janek looking over the menu. 

David saw you approach the Captain and briefly stayed to watch you approach Janek. He wondered if something so simple as remembering his name would actually help Janek like you. He saw you easily approach Janek and offer a smile before making a small remark about the smoothies. Janek responded with relative kindness and it was clear that Janek was comfortable with you.

David felt a pang of jealousy, both because he wished to speak to you, and also because he wished he could so easily converse with someone else. David further mused on the usefulness of the book if he himself would always be constrained by his nature. It was a bitter feeling to look about the recreation hall and watch his peers slowly pair off into groups of associates and friends, realizing he would likely never be apart of one of those groups. For the first time, David felt lonely.

"Hello, David." A soft voice called from behind him.

David turned, surprised, "Hello, Dr. Shaw. Are you well?"

Elizabeth gave David a fond smile, "I am David. Would you like to sit with me and Dr. Holloway? You look a bit lost."

David blinked, surprised that he would be invited to sit with them. He glanced in your direction and hesitated. Elizabeth smiled at David warmly, amused by the android's stalling. "Why don't I invite Janek and [y/n] over as well."

"I would be pleased to join you, however, I must attend the lab result from the dissection soon." David said, with true remorse. Could he possibly be a part of these merry crowds? Was there a place for him here?

"If you are worried about Miss Vickers, I can tell her that I needed your expertise. I would like you to join us David." Elizabeth gently guided David to you and Janek just as you were looking for a spot to eat.

"Would you two like to join David, Charlie, and I? I think we will have just enough seats in the booth over there." Dr. Shaw pointed out the nook where Dr. Holloway sat, head bent over a bright tablet.

"Sure! I'd love to get to know you guys better!" You responded with enthusiasm.

"I don't see why not." Janek said smiling.

David was amazed over the next half hour. He watched you converse freely and easily with the others, and even engaged his opinion into the conversation several times. He debated with Charlie about the merits of processual archaeology and conversed with Janek about the advent of terraforming probes. By the end of dinner, he found himself laughing and joking, and catalogued every moment, wondering if this would become a regular occurrence, or if this was the only time he would ever feel so carefree.

Finally, when you were finished with your food, and the conversation was winding down, he checked the time and realized it was 19:43. He shot a look in your direction and realized you were looking at him tenderly. He smiled, before looking back to Charlie, who was recounting an intense diving story when his dive watch malfunctioned and he had to risk getting a condition he called 'the bends' to surface before running out of air in his SCUBA apparatus.

"Elly has angry with me for weeks! I was totally fine, but I should have never bought that piece of junk." He exclaimed, and the table quieted down.

"David and I have to report to Vickers, but I had great time with you guys." You said, gathering up your dishes and trash.

"Oooo, tell her good evening for me." Charlie said, playfully.

"Would you like me to ask her for a kiss good night too, Charlie?" You asked, teasing. The table erupted into laughter, and Janek began making excuses to leave as well. You weren't certain that Janek actually had work, but he looked like he was desperately trying to avoid being left alone with the couple. David accompanied you out of the mess hall and smiled warmly at you.

"I thought you had work David." You said, inquisitively.

"Dr. Shaw insisted." He replied, clasping his hands behind his back and walking beside you comfortably.

"Well I'm glad she did. Do you think you would be able to join us more regularly?" You asked, nudging him.

David laughed, glad to be in the relative privacy of an empty hall, "Perhaps. I believe I could set aside some time for dinner if you wished to spend it with me. I'm not certain they would want me there however."

"That's nonsense, David, of course they enjoyed talking to you. You're well versed in their favorite topics." You replied, hoping to convince him.

"I'd be pleased to join you again." He said, reviewing the evening.

He realized that Janek responded well to his name, but he himself responded far more viscerally to being acknowledged by Shaw. He liked the feeling, and he now knew that the happiness he felt was because Shaw had recognized him, and chose to include him, and she began by calling him by his name.

You paused in front of Vickers' door, nervousness creeping in. David reached for your hand for a moment, squeezing it gently.

"I can present the data, if you wish. I am not certain how Vickers will react, but I will not let any harm befall you." David said gently.

You nodded softly and stepped inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> David learns the importance of a name
> 
> "... He never saw the inside of a high school; but before he was forty-six years of age, four colleges had honored him with degrees and he had become chairman of the Democratic National Committee and Postmaster General of the United States.
> 
> I once interviewed Jim Farley and asked him the secret of his success. He said, "Hard work," and I said, "Don't be funny."
> 
> He then asked me what I thought was the reason for his success. I replied: "I understand you can call ten thousand people by their first names."
> 
> "No. You are wrong, " he said. "I can call fifty thousand people by their first names." 
> 
> ... he built up a system for remembering names.
> 
> In the beginning, it was a very simple one. Whenever he met a new acquaintance, he found out his or her complete name and some facts about his or her family, business and political opinions. He fixed all these facts well in mind as part of the picture, and the next time he met that person, even if it was a year later, he was able to shake hands, inquire after the family, and ask about the hollyhocks in the backyard. No wonder he developed a following! 
> 
> ... The final list contained thousands and thousands of names; yet each person on that list was paid the subtle flattery of getting a personal letter from James Farley. These letters began "Dear Bill" or "Dear Jane," and they were always signed "Jim."
> 
> Jim Farley discovered early in life that the average person is more interested in his or her own name than in all the other names on earth put together. Remember that name and call it easily, and you have paid a subtle and very effective compliment. But forget it or misspell it - and you have placed yourself at a sharp disadvantage. 
> 
> ...
> 
> Most people don't remember names, for the simple reason that they don't take the time and energy necessary to concentrate and repeat and fix names indelibly in their minds. They make excuses for  
> themselves; they are too busy. 
> 
> ...
> 
> All this takes time, but "Good manners," said Emerson, "are made up of petty sacrifices." 
> 
> ...
> 
> We should be aware of the magic contained in a name and realize that this single item is wholly and completely owned by the person with whom we are dealing and nobody else. The name sets the  
> individual apart; it makes him or her unique among all others. The information we are imparting or the request we are making takes on a special importance when we approach the situation with the name of the individual. From the waitress to the senior executive, the name will work magic as we deal with others.
> 
> Principle 3 - Remember that a person's name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language."  
> \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part Two, Section 3


	7. An Easy Way To Become A Good Conversationalist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 4\. An Easy Way To Become A Good Conversationalist  
> ie. to be interesting is to be interested!

When you stepped into Vickers' room with David, you weren't sure what you should have expected from the conversation, but David seemed to know exactly what to expect.

"Shall I prepare something for you Ms. Vickers?" David asked, striding to the bar.

"Vodka. Up." She stated, turning a chair around from watching the holoscreen to watching you. Her beady eyes glinted as she tilted her head, observing you. You had only ever seen corvids engage in such dispassionate observation, and somehow, even though you thought your skin should crawl, it didn't. You stood at attention, holding her gaze gently - but not meekly, and waited for her to address you.

"You may sit." She said finally, a little smile making a way to her lips.

"Thank you." You replied, sitting in the same position on the couch as earlier this morning.

"David, report." Vickers said, still staring at you. You took a measured breath, and held her gaze calmly. You counted to ten in your mind as you slowly breathed in and out, letting the excitement flooding your system flow away from you. You needed to stay calm in front of Vickers, regardless of what she said, or how intensely she looked at you.

"All the artifacts used as evidence in Shaw and Holloway's thesis was tampered with in the early 2020s. A comparative analysis of the pieces yielded a 82% probability that a single person marked all of the artifacts, and a 99% probability that this person marked all by three of the artifacts. The uncertainty is most likely a result of a change in medium." David stated, shaking Vickers' vodka, and serving it, looking completely mechanical and doll-like. David stood straight behind her and stared off into space, completing his robot façade.

"And do you know how this happened?" Vickers asked, looking at you.

"All the pieces were in the British Museum in early 2020, and were likely not well guarded as a result of the Covid-19 epidemic. The cave in the Ilse of Skye is less than two days travel from London. Given that someone knew what they were looking for, and where, and had access to the museum, this could be the work of a single person." You replied, neither too eager, nor too docile, attempting David's perfect neutrality.

Vickers leaned back, sipping her drink, contemplating the news. Finally she stated, "This mission is a trap."

"The nature of the trap maybe more complicated, given that the Engineers in the structure were quite violently killed." David replied. Vickers shot him a warning glance and stood up.

Vickers changed the holoscreen from showing snowy pines to a map of the structure. "This 'temple'. Do you think it's a temple, David?"

"No ma'am. Current evidence suggests it may be a ship of some kind." David stated, not looking at you.

"If it's a ship, where is it's helm? It's navigation?" She asked, and you looked at the holoscreen, noting that very little had been explored.

"Undetermined. If Mr. Fifield can get his PUPS operational by the next mission, we will likely have much more thorough picture of the structure." David replied.

"And what about your failure to respond during the last mission? Where did you find her?" She asked, accusatory, and you remained impassive. You were fairly certain she was just fishing for a reaction, but you both maintained your impassive composure.

"I believe it was interference as a result of the depth ma'am. I am not equipped with long range hailing." David responded, and Vickers snapped her attention to you.

"How are you feeling." She demanded.

"Tired. I was told that my illness coming out of the structure was likely a result of being in stasis for so long." You replied, holding her gaze deferently. She seemed to calm down when you didn't capitulate to her aggressive behavior, yet remained submissive.

"I want you to go on the next mission. I want you to keep an eye on Shaw and Holloway and make sure they don't do anything stupid, or miss anything. And most of all I don't want them to know you are working for me." Vickers said, her expression becoming almost perfectly neutral.

"And should we find any live Engineers?" You asked, looking back at the screen.

"Report back to me." She responded, sitting down again. She seemed to size you up again out of the corner of her eye. She stared at the holoscreen for a long time, and a thought struck you.

"Were you ever convinced by the premise of this mission?" You asked, and noticed David shoot you a very apprehensive look. Vickers switched the holoscreen from the map to a bonfire.

"No," she answered succinctly, but did not seem annoyed, "but I was curious. And even if we don't find any live Engineers, there's plenty of stuff for us to analyze and take back. Learning how you survived seventy years in stasis will be very useful for upcoming projects."

She emptied her glass and continued, waving away David's offer of a second glass. "We need to find out how they died. We need to learn what their weapons are, what technologies they have on board, what maps they have, and how their ship runs. If it is a ship. And then we can go back home." Her eyes glimmered with the reflection of the projected fire, and although she looked determined, she didn't seem to be as cold as she was at first to you.

"You are dismissed." She stated, and you stood up.

"Good night, Ms. Vickers." You replied, and quietly left with David.

Once out in the hallway again, you let out a shaky breath, calming your frayed nerves.

"I think she likes you." David said, smiling at you.

"I can't figure out why she doesn't like you." You replied, smiling at David.

"I believe you are unique in appreciating my nature." David replied, looking at you fondly. You wondered how you could have ever thought he was really so different from you. Perhaps a little rough around the edges, but who wouldn't be if everyone treated them so differently? You shook your head.

"Then I'll try to show you how you should be treated." You replied, not really knowing where David was leading you. You and David made a few more turns before you show up at your room.

He walked you inside and shut the door before turning to you briefly.

"I read the chapter about the importance of names. I have never seen this principle formalized, but I have observed this social phenomenon several times. Are all the chapters in the book so informative?" David asked, picking up the book again.

"Most of them are. I think I actually found that chapter one of the least helpful. I think you should try to read the chapters in order though, I think it makes more sense that way." You stated.

David nodded and returned the book back to where it was before. You found it endearing that he was so neat about his actions and his surroundings. The books were arranged by size and were very carefully - almost artfully - balanced upright. It seemed almost like a sculpture and you weren't even certain how such perfection of such simple items was possible.

"This room comes equipped with a screen." David stated, revealing a small compartment with a remote within, and turning on the holoscreen. It was revealed to be in the wall across from the bed, and he briefly showed you the wide array of movies in the library, and then David showed you it came equipped with a modern video gaming system which was nothing like you had ever encountered before.

After sometime fiddling around with the new age Nintendo system, you yawned, growing tired again. You normally would have been rather concerned that you felt the urge to sleep so soon after taking such a long nap, but you still didn't feel fully recovered from the cryosleep.

David noticed this and rummaged through one of the drawers.

"I do not have any sleep apparel, but I have observed that overlarge shirts are somewhat acceptable substitutes. I have always found this one particularly soft." David stated, holding out a very soft cotton shirt that must have been large on him, and would be huge on you.

You thought briefly about how quickly things had escalated with David. Some of your friends would commit to relationships quickly and have sex with people they didn't know for long. However you were never like that; it always took so long for you to be sure of your emotions and to feel secure about yourself and feel safe with other people that the thought of engaging in that kind of behavior scared you. Where they saw a stranger whose opinion they couldn't care less about, you saw a potentially mean person who might make fun of your insecurities. 

You took the shirt from David and realized that he was different. He was kind and gentle and had all the patience in the world where it was necessary. He revered you to the point where you were certain you didn't deserve his affection, and he said just the right things to make you feel like you were important enough to deserve it. You knew the pace at which you grew close to David was perfectly natural. You smiled tenderly, "Thank you, David."

A mischievous thought struck you. "I can't promise I won't steal a few others though, while you aren't here." You slowly unzipped your jacket and began stripping for David.

David's warm expression melted to be replaced by an expression of tightly controlled anticipation you had only ever seen him wear. His mouth was slightly parted, and he watched you absolutely still as his gaze drifted lower and lower. You had kicked off your shoes upon entering the room, and now you began unzipping your pants and shimmying out of them, moving your hips as fluidly as you could. You stepped out of your pants carefully and lifted your arms above your head, slowly pealing off your shirt. You pulled off your shirt and fell back into the bed, smirking playfully at David.

"Do you want to help me put on your shirt?" You asked, biting your lower lip. David had not moved a millimeter from his earlier pose, and he finally seemed to snap out of his reverie. He slowly approached you on the bed and leaned over carefully, drinking in the sight of your body and searching your face thoroughly.

He finally placed a firm hand on your belly, pinning you in place before lowering to his knees between your thighs. You placed a hand on his and watched him, wondering if you had gone too far.

David placed a soft kiss on your inner thigh and he fought the violent urge to hurt you in an effort to sexually gratify himself. _How could a human attain such perfection?_ He wondered. In that moment everything about you was so prone, so ready for him, and you did it just for him. Such rapt attention to his desire, to his pleasure was something he had never in his life experienced. You promised to show him how he should be treated, and you laid yourself bare before him as a reward for something so mundane as giving you his shirt.

You placed a hand on David's cheek, and offered him a tender smile. "We don't have to if you don't want to."

David immediately repressed the horror and disgust he felt at even briefly entertaining the thought of raping you. When he saw your face, he knew he wouldn't be able to do such a thing to you. He would never hurt you. David kissed your palm and moved over you.

"I would like to, but I have to attend the lab results." He said, excusing himself so that he could collect his thoughts.

"Oh, right! I forgot about those." You replied, putting on his shirt.

You caught David's hand before he left the bed and lifted yourself up to kiss his cheek. "Don't stay up too late." You whispered, and David nodded seriously, kissing your cheek in return.

You left to go brush your teeth, and heard a soft, "Sweet dreams," before the door closed behind David.

David quickly straightened his clothes and hair as he walked to the lab, using his minutely shaky palms to flatten out his hair and his uniform. He clenched and unclenched his hands as he walked and decided to run another diagnostic when he started his analysis. Striding into the lab, he was grateful to find it empty, and he began donned his labcoat and protective equipment before setting himself down at the lab bench and beginning his work.

David began his diagnostic, reassessing his emotional responses, and found them to be within normal capacities. _Did whoever program me think that murderous rage was normal?_ David thought harshly, clenching his jaw. He didn't know why he was angry, but he was. He didn't like the way Vickers was looking at you in your meeting. You were _his_ human, and none other could possess you. He didn't like how Janek was looking at you, he didn't like how Shaw addressed you, and he certainly didn't like how Holloway was joking with you before you left the mess hall. He would hurt them. He would vivisect them into little pieces and experiment on each and every shred of their being. He would torture them and use them as a tool to better understand human pain and fear. He would watch their fragile little heads explode like the Engineer's head had, and he would proclaim them nothing but fragile mortals.

David's grip on his pen became so tight that he snapped it in two, and felt the broken pen stab into his hand, and the smooth black ink mixed with his white blood. He watched it, mesmerized for a few moments before remembering your parting words. _Don't stay up too late._

His mind cleared almost instantly after that release of emotion. He efficiently cleaned up his hand and the mess and finished his work at peak efficiency. He sent the report off to Shaw, Ford, Holloway, and Vickers and shut down the lab.

He spent the next few hours completing various tasks around the ship to quietly ponder why his emotions had cleared they way they had. Perhaps it was the strange beauty of the ink and blood in his palm. Perhaps it was the result of having his attention drawn to his injury which had cleared his mind. Perhaps it was the act of violence itself which had satiated his anger. The more he thought, the more he hypothesized, and the more he hypothesized, the more experiments he formulated to confirm or deny his hypotheses. David decided he would test all three, beauty, pain, and violence, to develop his theories regarding this newfound phenomenon.

When he reached your shared bedroom, however, the matter was put aside as he was quite content to spend sometime with you.

David sat on the edge of the bed, petting your hair softly, before stroking a knuckle down your cheek. You smiled softly, waking up, and caught his hand in yours. David liked the feeling of your hand holding his, and smiled softly in response when you kissed it.

"Do you want to join me?" You asked softly, scooting over in the bed. David nodded and stripped himself down to his underwear, neatly leaving his folded clothes in a stack on the floor before sliding into the bed with you. You snuggled up to his side and laid your head on his firm chest, amused that his body didn't make any noise.

David held you gently and listened as you fell asleep in his arms the second time that day. David kissed your forehead softly as he heard your breathing even out again and your muscles relax around his. David laid there, watching you for the rest of the night, cataloging every breath and every heartbeat and every movement your made. You did not stir much under his gaze, but he wondered if his rapt attention of you would gain him as much favor as your attention to him gained you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, creepy David is back!
> 
> "... So she said: "Oh, Mr. Carnegie, I do want you to tell me about all the wonderful places you have visited and the sights you have seen."
> 
> As we sat down on the sofa, she remarked that she and her husband had recently returned from a trip to Africa. "Africa!" I exclaimed. "How interesting! I've always wanted to see Africa, but I never got there except for a twenty-four-hour stay once in Algiers. Tell me, did you visit the big-game country? Yes? How fortunate. I envy you. Do tell me about Africa."
> 
> That kept her talking for forty-five minutes. She never again asked me where I had been or what I had seen. She didn't want to hear me talk about my travels. All she wanted was an interested listener, so she could expand her ego and tell about where she had been. Was she unusual? No. Many people are like that. 
> 
> ...
> 
> An interesting conversationalist? Why, I had said hardly anything at all. I couldn't have said anything if I had wanted to without changing the subject, for I didn't know any more about botany than I knew about the anatomy of a penguin. But I had done this: I had listened intently. I had listened because I was genuinely interested. And he felt it. Naturally that pleased him. That kind of listening is one of the highest compliments we can pay anyone. "Few human beings," wrote Jack Woodford in Strangers in Love, "few human beings are proof against the implied flattery of rapt attention." I went even further than giving him rapt attention. I was "hearty in my approbation and lavish in my praise."
> 
> I told him that I had been immensely entertained and instructed - and I had. I told him I wished I had his knoledge - and I did. I told him that I should love to wander the fields with him - and I have. I told him I must see him again - and I did.
> 
> And so I had him thinking of me as a good conversationalist when, in reality, I had been merely a good listener and had encouraged him to talk. 
> 
> ...
> 
> Listening is just as important in one's home life as in the world of business. Millie Esposito of Croton-on-Hudson, New York, made it her business to listen carefully when one of her children wanted to speak with her. One evening she was sitting in the kitchen with her son, Robert, and after a brief discussion of something that was on his mind, Robert said: "Mom, I know that you love me very much."
> 
> Mrs. Esposito was touched and said: "Of course I love you very much. Did you doubt it?" 
> 
> Robert responded: "No, but I really know you love me because whenever I want to talk to you about something you stop whatever you are doing and listen to me."
> 
> The chronic kicker, even the most violent critic, will frequently soften and be subdued in the presence of a patient, sympathetic listener - a listener who will he silent while the irate fault-finder dilates like a king cobra and spews the poison out of his system. 
> 
> ...
> 
> People who talk only of themselves think only of themselves. And "those people who think only of themselves," Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler, longtime president of Columbia University, said, "are  
> hopelessly uneducated. They are not educated," said Dr. Butler, "no matter how instructed they may be."
> 
> So if you aspire to be a good conversationalist, be an attentive listener. To be interesting, be interested. Ask questions that other persons will enjoy answering. Encourage them to talk about  
> themselves and their accomplishments. 
> 
> Remember that the people you are talking to are a hundred times more interested in themselves and their wants and problems than they are in you and your problems. A person's toothache means  
> more to that person than a famine in China which kills a million people. A boil on one's neck interests one more than forty earthquakes in Africa. Think of that the next time you start a  
> conversation.
> 
> Principle 4 - Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves."  
> \- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Part Two, Section 4


End file.
